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New Arrivals

New Arrivals: Guelbenzu EVO, Vierlas, and Guelbenzu Red

You don’t have to speak the same language to agree that these are three delightful wines from Spain.

Wine terminology is a funny thing. We all probably know someone who seems more obsessed with their knowledge of wine than actually enjoying  it (we touched on this with humor way back in 2002). And although there was a time when there were really only two types of wine lovers – effete snobs with arcane vocabulary, and everyone else – we’ve come a long way. These days some of the most knowledgeable wine lovers you’ll meet will eschew pretentious jargon in favor of comfortably and accurately describing their experience. This is nowhere more evident than here at Main Party, when Joey (the owner) is sampling a new wine. As he was recently when Suzie Northway of Michigan’s Imperial Beverage brought along Birte Steinfatt, a representative from Guelbenzu, the Spanish winemaker. As they began presenting the wines, Joey hurled around terms like “jammy” and “barnyard” and “juice”. And perhaps a few expletives expressing his enthusiastic response, which I won’t repeat here. Although Birte – who happens to be German – probably speaks better English than anyone else in the room, I think I detected a subtle look of befuddlement on her face at the term “barnyard”. No matter; in the end everyone found a common language – these wines speak for themselves. And we’re going to let Guelbenzu speak for their wines, below. With one added note. Joey was thankful that they brought along a bottle of the 2000 EVO, pointing out that it showed quite a bit better than the 2006 we’ll have in the store. Which of course suggests that if the 2006 is as exceptional as it is now, you can probably cellar it for an even more delightful treat in a couple of years. Notes below.


Guelbenzu EVO 2006
The year’s best Cabernet predominates, with a complement of Merlot and Tempranillo, aged one year in 100% new Alliers, Nevers and Limousin oak. Concentrated black fruit with claret-esque cedar notes, rich and long on the palate and with excellent ageability.

Guelbenzu Vierlas 2007
A fruit-forward style is the objective from a blend predominated by Syrah, Tempranillo and Merlot with smaller percentages of Graciano, Garnacha and Cabernet Sauvignon, aged a scant three months in a mixture of new and used French oak. Spice and sweet fruit abound on the nose and palate, framed by Guelbenzu’s typical sense of fruit purity.

Guelbenzu Red 2009
Taking full advantage of La Lombana’s complex vineyard composition, featuring the Merlot, released without oak aging. Spicy, refreshing, intense and long in finish.