Wine Advisor
Numanthia, Numanthia 2002
View analysis
Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
There are 350 cases of the unfiltered 2002 Numanthia. Produced from yields of one ton of fruit per acre from 70-100 year old Tinto de Toro (the local name for Tempranillo) vines, it enjoyed an extended 28-day maceration as well as 19 months in new French oak before being bottled unfined and unfiltered. A strong effort for the vintage, this deep ruby/purple-tinged 2002 exhibits scents of pain grille intermixed with raspberries, black cherries, and hints of licorice as well as spice box. With medium to full body, surprising density, high glycerin, sweet tannin, and a heady, perfumed, generous personality, it should drink well for 5-7 years. Broker Jorge Ordonez is heavily involved in this project, which is an attempt to revive high quality wines in Toro, a distinctive viticultural area that was devastated by phylloxera. There are a number of serious wines emerging from Toro, but Numanthia may be the most perfectionist wine of the appellation (although Vega Sicilia’s Pintia and the Campo Elysio from Michel Rolland are among the worthy competitors). Importer: Jorge Ordonez, Fine Estates From Spain, Dedham, MA; tel. (781) 461-5767
About the Producer
Bodega Numanthia is an estate in the Toro region of northwest Spain, making three high-end red wines wines solely from the Tinta de Toro grape (aka Tempranillo). It is credited with playing a key role bringing the region into the international spotlight. The vines are distributed across numerous small plots on dry soils on either side of the Duero around the town of Toro. Bodega Numanthia estate vineyards cover 83 hectares (205 acres), although the winery sources from a total of 200 hectares (490 acres) across the region. The climate is continental with hot, dry days and cool nights. Most of the vines are at least 50 years old, with several parcels even older again, on ungrafted rootstocks. Numanthia's top wine, Termanthia, is regularly made from a single five-hectare (11-acre) parcel of 120-year-old vines. The grapes are crushed by foot, fermented in oak vats and the wine is aged in what is sometimes refered to as 200 percent new French oak (after an initial period in new oak, the wine is racked into another, unused new oak barrel). Numanthia's standard wine has 18 months aging in French oak barriques while Termes, the entry-level label, is made from younger vines (generally still over 30 years old) and aged in mainly seasoned and some new French oak. The estate was founded in 1998 by the Eguren family and US-based Spanish wine importer Jorge Ordoñez when there were only seven estates in the region. It has been owned by LVMH since 2008. Through its wine group, Sierra Cantabria, the Eguren family later established the Toro-based Teso la Monja range.
