Valenciso Fermentado en Barrica 2018

Luis Valentín and Carmen Enciso blend Viura with 30% Garnacha Blanca to make their excellent white wine, sourced from old vines on clay and limestone soils in Haro, Ollauri and Villalba. Bright, grapefruity and stony, with some apricot sweetness and notes of patisserie and baking spices. 2020-24
 

The barrel-fermented white 2018 Fermentado en Barrica shows very integrated oak and a subtleness and elegance that I love. They use Caucasian oak because they think it has smaller pores than French and it suits their needs for a creamy but not maderized white. This blend of 70% Viura with 30% Garnacha Blanca has insinuating notes of white fruit and flowers with a spicy twist and a terribly tasty palate, beautifully textured and with a chalky sensation that transported me to the limestone-rich soils of Rioja. It's medium-bodied, balanced, clean and precise. It has all that it takes for a nice evolution in bottle, but it can also be enjoyed young. 12,000 bottles produced.