Pago de Valdoneje El Rapolao 2021

The dark and earthy 2021 El Rapolao is quite generously oaked and reveals abundant toasted, spicy and smoky notes. The fruit is ripe and dark, black rather than red. Give it a little more time to better integrated the oak. It has abundant, slightly dusty tannins that would also benefit from some more time in bottle and/or powerful food. It's ripe at 14.2% alcohol, with higher ripeness than I'm seeing in the best examples from the cru. 1,800 bottles were filled after the wine spent eight months in 225-liter oak barrels.