A lovely family winery situated in Olite, the ancient capital of Navarra. Bodegas Ochoa is one of the oldest wine producers in this region. In caring for the vines, they practice a combination of hand planting, pruning and harvesting, coupled with mechanization. The vineyards rest on lime and clay slopes that face south, which gives the best exposure to the sun. The wines are fermented in temperature-controlled stainless steel tanks, with lengthy maceration and heavy use of pumping-over for color.
When it comes to aging, the winery uses oak that
has been naturally weathered outdoors for two years. The type of oak used and
the length of aging depends on each wine.
The Ochoa, estate bottled Garnacha
& Tempranillo (50-50%) is a very aromatic young red wine. It is a deep red
color - think reddish black plumb. On the nose, dark fruit comes up right away
- black berries, black plumb, cassis, fig, licorice (if you've ever had allsorts, that's what I'm
talking about). I'm also getting a little bit of spice and cedar, but for
the most part it's fruit. On the palate, I get black fruits, not so much of the
licorice. I get a little more wood and spice coming through. The finish is
decent for being a young, inexpensive value wine. The fruit doesn't drop off
like some other wines.
You can get it for around $12
Thanks for sharing!
Posted by: janet | February 26, 2009 at 08:37 AM