VivaltuS 2019

Meaty and peppery character with plenty of dark fruit, dark chocolate and earthy notes. It shows intensity, but it’s balanced and restrained, with a medium to full body and structured, quality tannins. The mid-palate is full of fruit, with a juicy, vibrant aftertaste. It is already attractive, but better after 2026.

Tempranillo, Merlot. A blend from Fuentenebro and La Aguilera. Old vines (around 90 years old) grown between 850 and 1,000 m above sea level. In Fuentenebro, red clays predominate; in La Aguilera, sandy soils with a clay-limestone layer. Hand-harvested. Triple selection of the berries (vineyard, bunch, then an optical sorter). The final blend is made by Jean-Claude and Jeff Berrouet after malolactic conversion. 95% of the wine aged 11 months in French oak barrels (15% new), and the remaining 5% aged in Italian terracotta vasijas. 14,000 bottles. Tasted blind. Combination of red and black fruit, with a touch of lollipop that makes it attractive. Very approachable, with moderate alcohol and uplifting freshness. Exquisite and very moderate oak work. Ribera del Duero with softness and roundness, highlighting the fresh fruit character. The hands of Jean-Claude Berrouet and his son Jeff can be perceived in this great wine made from a blend of grapes from different villages. (FC)

The 2019 Vivaltus hails from Ribera del Duero and was aged up to 12 months in barrel and amphora. Garnet in color, it opens with licorice and wild herbs—laurel and meadow tones—then shifts into black and red fruit, adding complexity. The palate is compact, with reactive fine-grained tannins and a lightly angular structure, finishing with a soft chalky feel. A warmer vintage is evident in the riper fruit and tannin profile. It will evolve more quickly in bottle than the 2018.

Delicious, saline, tongue-scraping tannic grip, vertical rise through the palate and yet rooted to the spot, more about texture and taste than aromatics at this point, but promising so much unfurling over the next four to five years. Studded with sage and rosemary, muscular blackberry and spiced raspberry, fully recommend getting to know this evolving and surprising Ribeiro del Duero. Jean-Claude and Jeff Berrouet consultants, with winemaker Montxo Martinez and owners Marcos and Carlos Yllera. Vineyards at 750m to 1000m attitude from high quality plots across the region, from a selection of their own vines and some of local growers. Aged in 25% new oak, 10% amphora, and the rest in neutral barrels.

The 2019 Vivaltus was produced from a blend of Tempranillo and Merlot from La Aguilera and Fuentenebro in pursuit of elegance, freshness and finesse, with the help of Jean-Claude Berrouet. Each plot is fermented separately with neutral yeasts, and after malolactic the blend is made, which then ages in barrel (15% new) and 5% in clay tinajas for one year. 2019 was dry, with lower yields; the berries were smaller, the skins thick, and the juice concentrated and powerful. They carried out a gentler vinification, aiming to extract less. This is always serious and classical, with the ripeness of the year while retaining a floral, elegant side. It has 14% alcohol, a pH of 3.56—maintaining balance in this very warm, dry year—and 5.23 grams of acidity. It has the components and the balance to age gracefully and for a long time in bottle. 16,000 bottles produced. Bottled in June 2021.