238, The Wine Advocate | 31st Aug 2018 | Luis Gutiérrez
The 2012 Vendimia Seleccionada is also older than the majority of reds I tasted from the Yllera group of wineries in Ribera del Duero, Rueda and Castilla y León. They select grapes from older vines in different zones to produce this wine, which aged in oak barrels for two years and spent a further two years in bottle before being released. This is a wine from before the arrival of Berrouet (after the 2015 harvest), so it has more extraction, more oak and a later harvest, influenced by Rioja, trying to produce a classical wine. It's mostly grapes from Toro, following their more traditional style, but it's also a style of wine that might be going out of fashion for certain groups of consumers. It has plenty of spices, smoke and ripeness, but it's not excessive; what I find to interfere more are the abundant oak tannins on the palate. Some people will love this wine, which I find too oaky for my taste.