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Dominio de Valdepusa- Marqués de Griñón

By Darryl Beeson

The innovative Carlos Falcó y Fernandez de Cordova is one of the great visionaries of the wine industry in 20th Century Spain. During his studies at UC Davis, influenced by the iconic professor Maynard Amerinehe, Falcó became convinced that his location near Toledo could be adapted to produce world-class wine. The very dry area traditionally produced olives and grain.

The elevation is higher, therefore much cooler, than many Spanish wine regions.  The area of the vineyard has a thin layer of topsoil over almost pure limestone, similar to Burgundy. Innovations with wet zone/dry zone drip irrigation in the 1970's (illegal at the time), plus fine-tuning of the vine's canopy by Australian wiz Dr. Richard Smart, made for wine success.

The estate is known as the Dominio de Valdepusa, since it is located in the valley of the Pusa river in the Toledo province of Spain, between Toledo and Madrid, the ancestral home of the Marqués de Griñón.

Winemaker Julio López Mourelle is assisted by renowned French consultant Michel Rolland, successor to Dr. Emile Peynaud, the original consultant to the estate.  Rolland's contributions include later harvesting of the grapes, introduction of a gravity fed tanks, use of hand destemming, and abandonment of fining and filtration.

In July of 2003, Spain reformed its wine law, establishing a new category of Denominación de Origen (DO) called Vinos de Pago (vineyard-designate wines - pago means vineyard), the highest level in the Spanish wine hierarchy. The very first of these Vinos de Pago was the Dominio de Valdepusa.

Dominio de Valdepusa (Marqués de Griñon) "Emeritus" Toledo 2000
Price $50
Rating 95
Deep cherry color, the intense, elegant and expansive nose offers subtle aromas. The blend is primarily Cabernet Sauvignon and is Bordeaux inspired, except for the addition of Syrah. "Emeritus" means deserving in latin.

Dominio de Valdepusa (Marqués de Griñon) Syrah, Toledo 2000
Price $35
Rating 94
The color is dark purple, followed by complex aromas of jammy blackberries, violets, cassis and freshly ground  pepper. The sip leads with dark fruit, pepper and leather. Hints of bacon are in the middle. Earthy complexity follows through in the long, complex length.

Dominio de Valdepusa (Marqués de Griñon) Petit Verdot, Toledo 2000
Price $35
Rating 94
Aromas of complex, floral and wood meld with ripe fruit, liquorice and freshly ground pepper.  On the palate, it exhibits smoky, spicy black cherry and black currant. The tannins are dusty and concentrated with rich plum rising within the long, concentrated length.

Marqués de Griñon "Alea" Crianza Rioja, Spain 1997
Price $12
Rating 87
There are delicate aromas of prune, spice, tobacco and cherry, followed by flavors of the same in the medium length on the palate.

Dominio de Valdepusa (Marqués de Griñon) Cabernet Sauvignon, Toledo 2002
Price $40
Rating 89
The color is a deep purple. This Cabernet Sauvignon explodes in the glass with intense aromas of wild red fruits, spices, with hints of cinnamon, tobacco and chocolate. The sip reveals a full-bodied wine with an outstanding array of fruit flavors, well structured, with soft tannins in the long length.

Dominio de Valdepusa (Marqués de Griñon) "Summa Varietalis" Toledo 2002
Price $34
Rating 90
color is deep ruby with purple hues. The nose is elegant, contrasted with zesty pepper, clove, cocoa, smoke and rich dark berry aromas. There are layers of wild red fruit flavors, along with notes of mineral and spices.
This red blend of Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Petit Verdot, has intense and complex berry flavors, velvety texture plus the gentle spiciness of French oak.

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Darryl Beeson travels the world looking for excelleny wine values. He reports for numerous publications and broadcast programs.

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