Dominio del Bendito El Primer Paso, Toro, Spain

班迪托酒莊第一步紅葡萄酒

點(diǎn)擊次數(shù)：1404

The 2021 El Primer Paso matured in barrel for six months. It's creamy, lush and round, with an unbelievable 16% alcohol but still comes through as balanced, in an XL way. It has integrated oak; they are reducing the percentage of American oak to maybe 30%. It has notes of licorice and ripe berries, and it's easier to drink than you might think; it's ripe and hedonistic with a round and full-bodied palate with slightly dusty tannins. 59,285 bottles produced.

The 2019 vintage combines quantity and quality, and the wines are ripe and round, as I could see in the 2019 El Primer Paso. The wine reveals ripe berries and integrated spice after six months in barrel. It's full-bodied, with abundant, slightly dusty tannins. 69,460 bottles produced.

The serious and balanced 2018 El Primer Paso showcases the house style of powerful and intense wines produced with fully mature Tinta de Toro grapes, full of flavor and character. This matured in oak barrels for some six months, and the oak is perfectly integrated. It has varietal aromas and flavors and a chalky texture, with more freshness than the 2017 I tasted next to it, reflecting a slightly cooler year. 62,000 bottles produced. It was bottled in July 2019.

Slightly riper than the 2018, the 2017 El Primer Paso revealed darker fruit and more abundant tannins that gave it a slightly powdery texture. This vintage is going to require powerful food and/or a little more time in bottle to soften those tannins. 2027 was a shorter crop, and they produced 44,289 bottles of this. It was bottled in August 2018.

I encountered a bottle of the 2016 El Primer Paso, the entry-level red from Domino del Bendito, before tasting the wine, and I have to confess I almost downed the bottle on my own. It gives you an idea of the drinkability in this somewhat challenging but lighter and fresher vintage. It's juicy, ripe and hedonistic, a faithful interpretation of the zone, grape and vintage—hedonistic and lush, very pleasant. 62,304 bottles produced. It was bottled in August 2017.