The 2005 Clos Mogador is the first wine in Spain entitled to the new classification of “Vi de finca Qualificada”. The estate is 20 hectares composing a single vineyard. The Garnacha wines are 80+ years of age while the other varieties (Carinena, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah) have been planted since the early 1980s. Average yields are under 10 hectoliters per hectare and only 2000 cases are produced. The winery has never purchased outside fruit. The wine is deep purple-colored with a superb bouquet of toasty oak, pencil lead, mineral, blackberry and black cherry. This leads to an opulent, dense, packed, structured wine with 6-8 years of aging potential. Super-concentrated, sweetly-fruited, and complex, this tour de force of a wine will drink well from 2012 to 2040. Importer: Christopher Cannan, Europvin; www.europvin.com

(a blend of garnacha, cabernet sauvignon, syrah and carinena) Opaque violet. A head-spinning bouquet of ripe blackcurrant, cherry liqueur, cola, candied plum, mineral and floral scents, along with a suave undercurrent of spicy oak. Deeply concentrated dark berry and cherry preserve flavors are impressively powerful and ripe, but improbably fresh too. Chewy tannins build on the finish but are overwhelmed by the intense, powerful fruit. This is a beast right now and in need of at least seven to ten more years in a cool cellar, maybe more. Then serve it with the richest red meat dish you can come up with.

Garnacha, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Cariñena Totally inviting and zesty plus a sweet/sour brightness and minerality. Fine-grained tannins that slide across the palate. Fresh and moreish. (JH)