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Bideona

2020

‘S4MG0’ Samaniego

Tinto   |   Rioja Alavesa - Spain
Shelf Talker Spec Sheet Wine Label Bottle Image

About

Bideona’s village wine series is intended to showcase the differences in character among the great, historic wine villages of Rioja Alavesa. This series also highlights a senseless regulation of the Denominación de Origen, which allows the use of a village name by the location of the winery – the building – and not the vineyards. Despite having full traceability of each vineyard parcel, Bideona cannot legally use village names on the labels. As a clever workaround, they have substituted all village names with acronyms that they have registered as brands. Thus, ‘Samaniego’ becomes S4MG0. This Tempranillo field blend comes from old vineyards planted between 1930-1984. Transitioning to the higher slopes closest to the Sierra Cantabria, Samaniego produces some of the most sought-after grapes of Rioja Alavesa.

The grapes were hand harvested in small crates and then manually sorted on a sorting table before being de-stemmed. Alcoholic and malolactic fermentations were carried out in stainless-steel tanks via a mix of indigenous yeast and a house cultured yeast strain. Gentle pump-overs were done to maximize personality without high extraction of color or tannins. The wine was pressed off the skins and was sent to a mix of stainless-steel, concrete, new oak, and used oak for 12 months of aging. It was bottled with a coarse filtration and very gentle sulfur addition. No fining.

Stats

  • Grapes: Tempranillo & other field blend varieties
  • Vineyard: Various parcels within the Samaniego village
  • Vine Age: 36-90-years-old
  • Soil Type: Calcareous clay
  • Viticulture: Practicing organic
  • Fermentation: Native & inoculated with house-cultured yeasts – stainless-steel (100% de-stemmed)
  • Aging: 12 months in a mix of stainless steel, concrete, bigger and smaller oak vessels (mostly used, some new)
  • Alcohol: 14.5%
  • pH: 3.81
  • Total Acidity: 5.12
  • Total SO2: 30 ppm
  • Total Production: 790 cases
  • UPC: 8437000693956

Tasting Notes

This wine has a powerful frame with fresh acidity and firm, but velvety tannins. The fruit tends towards sour cherries and a minty, spicy complexity. With their structure and depth, Samaniego wines can age beautifully for decades, but also show remarkable grace in their youth.

Press & Reviews

Vinous

96

"The 2020 S4MG0 Viñas Viejas is 100% Tempranillo sourced from Samaniego, Rioja Alavesa, produced by Bideona as part of their effort to highlight specific places and towns in Rioja. Aged in concrete and foudres, this wine has a dark garnet hue. It offers aromas of plums and blackberry, accompanied by hints of sour cherry, petit four and truffle. On the palate, it is dry, bold and rich, with a liqueur-like character and fine-grained tannins that linger. A delightful red, it represents a modern expression of Rioja. Its clever and elusive name subtly references the place without explicitly mentioning it, in compliance with the labeling regulations in Rioja."

- Joaquín Hidalgo

James Suckling

93

"A fine, place-oriented Rioja with roasted spices and rich but fresh blue fruit. Fine-grained tannins melt away in a long finish loaded with fruit. A little fuller and more structured than the tense 2021. Drink or hold."

- Zekun Shuai

Producer


Bideona

Region


Rioja Alavesa

Country


Spain

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