FÁUTOR | Tempranillo | 2017
tempranillo

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Tonight we are going to review a single-varietal tempranillo wine but not one from Spain as you might have thought – this one is made in Moldova – Tempranillo 2017 by Fáutor Winery. Tempranillo is a spanish variety that for a long time was ignored by the outside world as a slightly rustic grape of strictly local appeal, as its flavour profile is essentially savoury rather than fruity. Nowadays, tempranillo is increasingly recognised as an important grape variety that can result in firm, bold and age-worthy wines. This is one of the reasons why tempranillo can withstand long term ageing, for example this particular wine has been aged for 6 months in oak barrels. That said, without further ado, let’s take a look at the wine tasting results.
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Take a look at the tasting notes below and our detailed assessment of the wine:

//Visual
clarity: clear
concentration: deep
colour: crimson
hue/rim: garnet

//Sight
stain: medium
viscosity: medium
sediment: none

//Olfactory
outset: clean
intensity: powerful
fruit profile: black fruits
__black fruits: black cherry | black plum | blackcurrant | blackberry | black raspberry | aronia berry
fruit character: ripe

//Flavor
non fruit: spice | oak | earth
__spice: black pepper | nutmeg | cloves
__oak: liquorice | tobacco | roasted oakwood | smoke
__earth: soil dust
__wood: new / roasted
aroma: primary | secondary

//Palate
sweetness: dry
acidity: med(+)
alcohol: med(+)
tannin: high
__grip: ripe
texture: round
body: full
balance: fair
__dominant: acidity
complexity: complex

//Taste
fruit profile: black fruits
fruit character: ripe
non fruit: spice | oak | earth
finish: med(+)
aftertaste: seedy

//Scoring
FÁUTOR | Tempranillo | 2017
variety: tempranillo
climate: moderate
country: Moldova
region: Valul lui Traian
rating: 91.7

//Conclusion
maturity: on the rise
verdict: fine
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This is definitely a fine wine of Moldova and, with a total of 91.7 points scored, this wine is right there, among the best wines we’ve rated so far. Check our complete database on the wine rating page, where you can find all the wines that we have tasted and reviewed or go to the about us page and find out more about our exquisite rating system.

Verdict: this is a very fine tempranillo wine that is still too young to be enjoyed today, as its acidity and at a certain degree tannins are excessive at the moment. We would strongly recommend to keep it at least two or three more years in the bottle. The wine tastes fruity, seedy and quite muscular, with a nuanced new-world profile and an expressive, ripe and tannic palate. It might lack a bit of elegance and finesse, still the wine feels well balanced, bold and extracted. What makes this wine stand apart from its peers, is that it combines amazingly well those ripe-fruit flavours with the charred-woody notes, which makes it the perfect pairing partner for barbecued or grilled meats.

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© The WineStatistics ratings are based solely on our own knowledge of the world of wine and on our personal wine tastes, which may, or may not, differ from yours – the reader. Just remember that there are no absolutes of right and wrong in wine appreciation.