RP9393 pts. - Robert Parker’s The Wine Advocate - 31st Jan 2023
In 2020, he reached the target he set for himself when PSI first started, to produce around 300,000 bottles (it’s actually 350,000 bottles). The volume of the 2020 PSI is something that’s important, as it has availability and affordability, which is necessary when based on quality, purchasing only grapes from old vines (they use 7,000 plots for this volume!). So, they also started purchasing some of those vineyards in 2022 (they think they need 200 hectares to keep the volume, so the aim is to own maybe half of it). Peter Sisseck remarked that we have to remember 2020 was a warm year, but with the high content of limestone in the soils, the wine has kept very good freshness. They harvested early, before the rain, and they also used some 5% to 10% Garnacha (they could use up to 25%, according to regulations) in the blend to lower the pH of the wine. Below 3.8, he thinks, the wines from the zone are very angular and hard if it’s only Tempranillo, so Garnacha (which doesn’t have as much tannins as Tempranillo) can help with that; but the difficulty is finding Garnacha grapes, so they are considering planting some Garnacha for the future. The bottled wine has all that the sample promised—clean and healthy aromas, floral and elegant, aromatic and with good freshness. The palate is medium-bodied, with elegant tannins, pleasant and easy to drink. 350,000 bottles produced. It was bottled in July 2022. (Luis Gutiérrez)
RP92+92–94 pts. - Robert Parker’s The Wine Advocate - 29th Oct 2021
The unbottled sample of the 2020 PSI feels young, juicy, very fruit-driven and clean. 2020 was an unusual vintage, first of all because of COVID-19, but it was a year with lots of light, plenty of flowers and a beautiful spring. They were able to harvest quite early and finished two days before the abundant rains (except in Soria, which is a different story) that started on the 20th of September. In Ribera, there will be two different harvests: the wines before the rain and those from after. So, this is very healthy, aromatic and floral, with a spark of freshness but also ripe and round. It’s going to be a crowd-pleaser. It has a bright ruby color, with some 10% Garnacha. It somehow has less Tempranillo character. Volumes are similar to 2019, with around 350,000 bottles that they expect to bottle around June 2022. (Luis Gutiérrez)
JS9292 pts. - JamesSuckling.com - Thursday, January 5, 2023
Dried lemon rind and blueberries with sliced mushrooms on the nose. Bark too. Medium to full-bodied with firm tannins that are rather minerally and salty in nature. Crushed stone and powerful in the texture. A little rustic but real. Old vine character. Drink or hold.
SP9292 pts. - Wine Spectator - May 31, 2023
Plum sauce and pureed blackberry flavors are an enticing entry to this harmonious red, whose fruit profile and accents of black tea, iron and spice are layered with creamy yet sculpted tannins that firm the lasting finish. Drink now through 2028. 29,000 cases made. (Alison Napjus)
