Table of contents for January-March 2019 in Selectus Wines

2018 is coming to a close. And, after a year that has brought us good tidings and a prestigious award, you find us in good spirits! The recognition we have received from our industry peers is validation of the vision we had back in 2011, when the idea for this magazine was first muted and the Selectus Wines adventure got underway. We will therefore continue to work along the same editorial lines founded on the rigorous quality of the articles we publish. We are starting a new year that we hope will be even better than the old, as we have some exciting new ideas that, if all goes well, will be introduced from the April-June issue. We hope that these new ideas, which we are keeping under wraps for…

SPAIN A CORUÑA AC Hotel Palacio del Carmen. Santiago de Compostela ALAVA Hotel Marqués de Riscal – A Luxury. Elciego Collection Hotel Restaurant Zaldiarán . Vitoria-Gasteiz ALBACETE Rest. Maralba. Almansa ALICANTE Hospes Amerigo AC Hotel Ciutat d´Alcoi. Alcoi Restaurant Quique Dacosta. Dénia ASTURIAS AC Hotel Forum Oviedo. Oviedo Restaurant Casa Marcial. Arriondas Restaurant La Salgar. Gijón BARCELONA Hotel Mercer Hotel Le Méridien Restaurant Rías de Galicia Monvínic Restaurant Moments Santa Eulalia Joyería Rabat Joyería Suárez Hotel Majestic Hotel Omm Restaurant Windsor Hotel Palace Restaurant Caelis Celler de Gelida Restaurant La Clara Arsenal Masculino Four Points by Sheraton Restaurant Via Veneto Restaurant Abac Restaurant L´Oliana Hotel Rey Juan Carlos I Restaurant Gaig AC Hotel Victoria Suites Concesionario Mercedes Cars Barcelona Concesionario Maserati-Ferrari-Bentley Cars Gallery Restaurant Bravo 24 Hotel W Barcelona Club…

How many different wines do you list? 3,800 SKUs in total. How many bottles do you usually have in stock? Over 280.000 bottles in stock, all these wines kept under 7 x 24 temperature and humidity control. How many bottles do you sell per year? Approx. 38,000 btls / year. What’s the oldest wine in the shop right now? Ch. Lafite Rothchild 1870 (RP 100 pts). What’s the cheapest wine in the shop right now? How much does it retail for? La Vieille Ferme Rouge 2016, HK$ 119 (€13.36). And the most expensive and its price? DRC Romanee Conti 1979 (3L), HK$872.550 (€97.961,19). What’s the cheapest wine you´ve sold in the store’s history and its price? La Vieille Ferme Rouge, HK$119 (€13,36). And the most expensive in the store’s history…

AALTO PS 2016 · BODEGAS AALTO D.O. Ribera de Duero / Quintanilla de Arriba, Valladolid - Spain / www.aalto.es  P.V.P.: 72,00€ / 100% Tinto Fino (Tempranillo) Like his younger brother, Aalto, Aalto PS spent 17 months in half-new barrels before being bottled in July 2018. It is the winery’s top wine, produced to the highest standards of quality, so you won’t find it every year, we will only drink its best vintages. Tinto Fino aged between 60 and 90 years from single vineyard plots with the initial selection of the bunches already taking place in the vineyards. Its colour is a very dark red with a very intense colour. The nose lacks expression, as this is a wine that needs many years to show us its best. The…

ASTOBIZA VENDIMIA TARDIA 2015 · ASTOBIZA D.O. Txakolí de Alava / Okondo, Araba - Spaina / www.astobiza.esa  / P.V.P.: 18,00€ / 100% Izkiriota A late-harvested Ttxakoli thanks to a very sunny autumn, made from the Gros Manseng or Izkiriota varietal. Clean and bright, pale golden yellow, it moves slowly in the glass leaving dense tears. The nose is very attractive revealing citrus notes, honey and peaches in syrup with hints of orange blossom and tropical notes. On the palate, it preserves its perfume, but is not as sweet as it appears on the nose due to a nice balance between the sugar and acidity. Mineral notes come through followed by a subtly bitter finish. Very aromatic, just the right amount of succulence and acidity, with a long and…

The IWC Merchant Awards Spain 2018 jury presented the awards of this 3rd edition (which attracted over 250 entries in 16 categories and 2 special awards) before more than 200 guests from all sectors of the wine industry. Among them were a number of important players on the local wine scene and internationally including Masters of Wine, the best sommeliers in Spain and trade press, as well as high-level representatives from the most important Spanish wineries and wine groups. For the first time, the Awards event included the IWC Talks, an open forum intended to generate wine-related discussion with the participation of leading figures from the industry such as Pedro Ballesteros MW, Fernando Mora MW, Andreas Kubach MW, Almudena Alberca MW, Sam Harrop MW, Ferrán Centelles (former sommelier at El…

We were invited by the organizers to attend the first edition of this international exhibition, held in Shenzhen (China). It attracted almost 200 international exhibitors, as well as 10,000 visitors, of whom over 6,500 were from the wine trade, and more than 30 journalists from local and international media, including ourselves. Additionally, TOEwine invited over 30 experts to speak at 13 forums and master classes, which drew a large number of wine fans. As well as visiting the different stands, our attention was focused on the master classes, typically held at this type of event. One of the most interesting classes we attended was put on by Wines from Roussillon and led by their ambassador, Eric Aracil. We also enjoyed a tasting of Italian wines that covered the country’s various…

SHARING AND SURVIVING Champagne is synonymous with luxury and its sparkling wines are unique. But it is also synonymous with another form of luxury, that of a wise old land, a silent witness to a lifetime of wars, austerity and hard work, one that has managed to identify its values and strive for excellence. This is true of the large Champagne Houses, but above all, of the small producers and even at times when it was fashionable to look elsewhere. My first trip to the Kingdom of the Chardonnay was a real eyeopener. After visiting several champagne producers, I arrived at the home of Pierre Gimonet in the Côte des Blancs. This ‘craftsman of time and nature’ showed me a redefined concept of luxury: Champagne made by small producers who…

Cava Torelló will be at the most important sporting event in the history of Andorra, on 11-17 March 2019. The countdown has begun to the World Cup Finals in Soldeu-El Tarter, which positions Andorra and Grandvalira as one of the global leaders in alpine skiing. With the slogan “This winter, we are all champions”, the competition seeks to engage and create excitement throughout the country. Torelló has dressed its Special Edition for the occasion in a special shrink-wrap sleeve depicting a snowy background image of the Soldeu-El Tarter mountain and the superimposed logo of the World Cup Finals. It is a Brut Reserva 2013 made from the Macabeo, Xarel·lo and Parellada grapes harvested by hand in the Finca Can Martí, and has a minimum of 4 years’ ageing. It will…

JOAN ARBOIX ROURA Mallorca, 1981 @Joanet112 Professional sommelier since 2006, he began his career as a sommelier at the Moo restaurant (1* Michelin) in Barcelona. He has also worked for the Ritz Carlton in Spain and Chile as a sommelier and maître d’. He currently works at the Andreu Genestra (1* Michelin) restaurant in Mallorca. Balearic Islands Sommelier Champion 2008. Sumiller profesional desde el año 2006. Trabajó como sumiller en el restaurante MOO de Barcelona (1*Michelin). Ha trabajado para Ritz Carlton en España y Chile como Sumiller y Jefe de Sala. Actualmente en el restaurante Andreu Genestra (1*Michelin) en Mallorca. Campeón de Sommeliers de les Illes Balears en 2008. ANNA VICENS Girona, 1973 @annavicens Professional sommelier since 1997, she is currently President of the Catalan Association of Sommeliers, a member…

GRAN RESERVA ORIGINAL 1887 BRUT NATURE · CAVAS LLOPART C.R. Cava / Els Casots, Barcelona - Spain / www.llopart.com  / PVP.: 44,90€ / 50% Montónega, 25% Xarel·lo, 25% Macabeu This cava was released to commemorate the 125th anniversary of the winery’s first harvest, and the label reproduces the original from 1887. The grapes (Parellada, Xarel·lo and Macabeo) come from old vineyards with low yields growing at altitude. Intense yellow, golden tints and fine bubbles. The nose is of medium intensity, revealing ripe white, apple-like fruit with notes of quince and a citrusy finish. The palate shows a pronounced creamy character thanks to the smooth integration of the carbon dioxide, but it lacks a bit of nerve. It reveals notes of yeast and brioche, and a slight final bitterness…

A sweet white wine made from organically-grown Pansa Blanca using the ice wine method, in other words, with a cold maceration or cryomaceration. By lowering the temperature of the freshly crushed and destemmed grapes, and macerating them at a very low temperature for 18 hours, you can increase the solubilization of the aromas found in the skins of the grape without extracting too much astringency. The must is then very gently pressed and fermented in barrel, where it rests for 4 months, until its natural fermentation stops at 13° alcohol leaving an interesting amount of residual sugar. This is a surprising wine with remarkable aromatic intensity, enveloping the nose with primary fruit aromas. There are notes of peaches in syrup, jasmine and, of course, citrus notes of orange and grapefruit,…

WINE TOURISM AWARDS Best Wine Tourism Hotel Finca Los Arandinos Best Wine Tourism Experience Joint winners: Pagos Del Rey Museo Del Vino and Ruta Del Vino Somontano RETAIL AWARDS Best Supermarket Wine Selection Lidl Best Specialized Wine Shop Bodega Santa Cecilia Best Independent Specialized Wine Shop (maximum of 5 employees) Celler de Gelida Best Online Store Bodeboca COMMUNICATION, TRAINING & GASTRONOMY AWARDS Best Wine Marketing Campaign Ramón Bilbao for “El viaje comienza aquí” Best Packaging Mar De Frades Best Wine Guide Semana Vitivinícola Best Online Platform Spanish Wine Lover Best Educational Centre Escuela Española De Cata Best Wine Bar Monvínic (Barcelona) Best Restaurant Wine List Mugaritz Best Sommelier Guillermo Cruz WHOLESALER AWARDS Best Distributor Alma Vinos Únicos SPECIAL AWARDS Special Award for Vision and Innovation 2018 Ricardo Pérez Palacios Lifetime…

Born in Barcelona in 1957, Javier Pagés is a father of four and a wine lover (especially cava). His has a broad international education and has always worked within the wine industry. He gained a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from ESADE, an MBA from IESE and studied International Marketing at the Harvard Business School. After working for 5 years as sales manager for Victori Wines, Inc., a wine importer and distributor in the U.S., Pagés joined Codorníu Raventós in 1989, and has since held various positions in the company, including director of the group’s international division. He became the company’s CEO in 2005. He combines his position as chairman of the Cava Regulatory Board with his roles as vice-president of the Spanish Wine Federation and chairman of the Fira…

FINCA LA REÑANA VIURA 2017 · BODEGAS LUIS ALEGRE D.O.Ca. Rioja / Guardia, Araba - Spain / www.luisalegre.com/es  / P.V.P.: 16,00 € / 90% Viura, 10% Malvasía The Finca Reñana vineyard, located between Laguardia and Elvillar, is 85 years old. In 2017, not only did it produce few grapes due to its low yields, but the vineyard was also hit by frost in April which further reduced its production. However, the grapes that were harvested were fresh and healthy. After fermentation in French oak barrels, the wine underwent 8 months’ ageing on its lees with regular stirring (bâtonnage). This golden yellow wine is glyceric with aromas of citrus and white pepper. It is terpenic with floral notes due to the presence of 10% Malvasia in the blend. It…

Cristal is Roederer’s deluxe champagne, a range of recognised prestige and in great demand around the world. A champagne that is characterized by the nature of the limestone soil in which its grapes are born and by its long ageing. The maturity, density and power of this sparkling liquid gold (created in the 19th century to cater to the palate of Tsar Alexnder II) are its hallmarks. The idea for the brand name occurred once the champagne has been packaged in a crystal bottle with a distinctive flat, rather than concave, bottom. The name emphasizes transparency, light and clarity to symbolize the champagne’s purity and elegance. The 2008 vintage was warm and intense, which made it easier to obtain consistently excellent quality, fruity Chardonnay (40%) grapes and elegant, succulent Pinot…