Bodegas Alejandro Fernandez El Vinculo La Mancha 2011

The 2011 Bodegas Alejandro Fernandez El Vinculo continues Alejandro’s hot hand and ultimate success with old vine Tempranillo. With El Vinculo, whose name means the tie or the bond in Spanish, Alejandro has not only demonstrated La Mancha’s ability to produce high quality wine, he has inspired other La Mancha producers to up their game. Like its predecessors, the 2011 El Vinculo exudes an infectious charm with beautiful aromatics and plush juicy flavors. Blackberry and currant scents and flavors mingle with hints of sandalwood, Asian spices and touches of new oak to delight the nose and the palate. One discovers deep down flavors and power as well as subtle complexity in this El Vinculo. Given the warmth of the 2011 vintage, the 2011 El Vinculo sports a velvety texture backed by fine grained tannins, all of which add lift and allow this old vine offering to finish long and satisfying. Enjoy the 2011 El Vinculo at cool room temperature (no more than 65° F) now and over the next five years. For optimal enjoyment we suggest allowing the 2011 El Vinculo to breathe in a decanter or glass for at least 15-20 minutes, or as long as your patience will allow.

The 2011 El Vinculo demands nothing but a little time in the glass to work its magic. Serious red wine drinkers will delight in this old vine Tempranillo with or without food. However, fine old vine Spanish wines such as El Vinculo are best when brought to table to complement the finest cuts of meat, rich stews, and thick country cassoulets. Pork with Black Olives and Capers is a particular favorite of ours in the company of a bottle of El Vinculo. Veal can easily be substituted for pork in this dish for an equally rewarding experience. Duck Breast served Spanish style in a pungent, roasted garlic sauce with sliced stuffed olives and braised vegetables provides another winning companion. A plate of Braised Onions and Short Ribs offers a tasty accompaniment to El Vinculo as well. A Veggie Burger with marinated balsamic grilled vegetables, roasted portabellas, Manchego cheese, spinach, roasted red pepper aioli and a spicy dipping sauce makes a simple, tasty accompaniment, too. Enjoy!

El Vinculo is the fourth and last venture in great old vine Tempranillo from the legendary Alejandro Fernandez. Alejandro Fernandez personifies the mercurial 20th century Spanish experience. A family breadwinner from the age of thirteen, he has been a soldier, salesman, and master carpenter. After military service, he began working for an agricultural equipment firm, where he attained national success with the development of a revolutionary beet harvester. And while toiling on the land with farmers, he harvested yearly his own grapes and made his own wine, all the while dreaming of the day he would establish his very own commercial bodega for the production of Spain’s greatest red wine.

In 1972, at a time when most growers in the Ribera del Duero were pulling up vines in favor of more lucrative crops, Alejandro and his wife, Esperanza, licensed Pesquera, their now famous Ribera del Duero bodega, which is lodged in a 16th century logar and press house. Today, Alejandro Fernandez bears the name of “The King of Tempranillo,” as he is now widely acknowledged as the unrivaled master of Spain’s greatest grape variety. He has accomplished this feat by the selection of the ideal soils for the temperamental Tempranillo grape, great innovation in the cellar as well as in the vineyard, and an uncompromising desire to produce the best red wine in Spain.

Since the founding of Pesquera, Bodegas Alejandro Fernandez has created three other fabulous Tempranillo properties. El Vinculo (this month’s feature) is the fourth estate in this king’s crown. El Vinculo was established in 1999 near the village of Campo de Criptana in La Mancha’s Ciudad Real province. Alejandro first discovered La Mancha’s potential for world class Tempranillo when he came across an isolated stand of old vine Tempranillo growing amidst Campo de Criptana’s sea of white grapes. Realizing the potential of this isolated vineyard, Alejandro set his mind to producing the finest old vine Tempranillo in La Mancha. El Vinculo’s first vintage (1999) was released in 2001 to considerable acclaim. Today, El Vinculo reigns as the fourth jewel in Alejandro Fernandez’s crown of great Tempranillo estates and is often acknowledged to be the ultimate example of old vine Tempranillo in Castilla La Mancha. Alejandro Fernandez’s other great Tempranillo estates include Pesquera and Condado de Haza in Ribera del Duero and Dehesa La Granja in Zamora.