Wine Advisor
Numanthia, Numanthia 2003
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
The 2003 Numanthia was fashioned from yields of one ton of fruit per acre (from a clone of Tempranillo that often has the highest polyphenols of any Tempranillo clone). This cuvee is made from 70- to 100-year-old vines planted at a 2,300 foot elevation, which no doubt accounts for the freshness in this massively rich, intense red. A vivid, intense nose of espresso roast, pain grille, sweet black cherries, and creme de cassis is followed by a full-bodied, intensely-concentrated, rich, well-delineated, moderately structured, pure red that can be drunk young or cellared for a decade.
Reviewed by: Joaquín Hidalgo
The 2003 Numanthia, sourced from old vine plots in Toro, exhibits a dark brick color after 20 years. It reveals dried fig and balsamic aromas. Thyme is the most prominent against a backdrop of smoke and wax. Rich and overwhelming on the palate, the slightly reactive tannins bring forth a caramel, long-lasting finish. This wine, in its twilight years, shines bright and delightful.
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.
