Pedro Ballesteros Torres MW, Sarah Jane Evans MW and Pierre Mansour tasted 115 wines, with 7 Outstanding and 46 Highly recommended.
White Rioja: Panel tasting scores
115 wines tasted
Exceptional 0
Outstanding 7
Highly recommended 46
Recommended 54
Commended 8
Fair 0
Poor 0
Entry criteria: producers and UK agents were invited to submit current-release white Rioja wines of any style and any vintage
The category of white Rioja includes acclaimed wines such as Viña Tondonia Gran Reserva and Marqués de Murrieta Castillo Ygay – wines with exquisite elegance that can last longer than a human lifetime. There are also newer wines made in that model, as well as many other younger wines in a variety of styles, made from several different grape varieties. Probably because of this stylistic diversity, it can be hard for wine drinkers to pinpoint what ‘white Rioja’ is.
This panel tasting was excellent on two counts. First, because of the good scores. Second – and probably more importantly – because it helps us establish a definition of the most promising white Rioja style.
