This wine is produced from their oldest vineyards of white grapes and is composed of 75% Viura and 25% Tempranillo Blanco, all from vines over 60 years old. The wine was fermented in wooden barrels, 10 made of new French oak with medium toast and 4 of new acacia wood with light toast. After fermentation, the wine was aged for an additional 4 months in the barrels to increase complexity.
90pts Vinous – Antonio Galloni – 2016 vintage
“Pale green-hued gold. Oak-spiced orchard and pit fruits and a suggestion of vanilla on the perfumed nose. Pliant, appealingly sweet pear and peach flavors are firmed by a jolt of bitter quinine. The vanilla note recurs on a very long, smooth finish that leaves sweet pear nectar and orange notes behind. The oak here is quite well-judged.”
90pts Wine and Spirits– 2016 vintage
Scents of beeswax and smoke introduce this wine, its oak tannins adding a nutty richness while the saltiness and acidity keep it lively. Pale, round and pleasantly buttery, this will meld with white sausages and butter beans.
89pts View from the Cellar– 2016 vintage
I had not loved the 2015 version of this wine, but the 2016 is a notable step up and far more interesting. The barrel-fermented version of 2016 Viña Otano Rioja Blanco is a blend of seventy-five percent Viura and twenty-five percent Tempranillo Blanco, with the wine aged for four months in the French wood. Interestingly, only the Viura is barrel-fermented in new casks, while the Tempranillo Blanco is fermented in stainless steel. The new vintage of 2016 offers up a fine nose of yellow fruit, white soils, a bit of citrus peel, wild fennel and a gentle base of vanillin oak. On the palate the wine is crisp, full-bodied, young and nicely balanced, with good acids, fine focus and grip and a long, still quite primary finish. This is quite tasty today, but only hints at the complexity to come with bottle age. Good juice. 2018-2035.
