Bodegas Alejandro Fernandez "El Vinculo" Tempranillo

This prestigious estate is covered by a continuous expanse of around 200 hectares of prime Tempranillo vines. Alejandro Fernández’s vineyards have grown on the banks of the River Duero next to poplar and willow groves in a land that has become legendary, since 1987. However, Alejandro had to wait until 1993 for the estate at Condado de Haza to be up and running and become totally self-sufficient, and for the whole winemaking process, from the vine to the bottle, to be carried out exclusively in the bodega. To facilitate the winemaking process and perfect his wines, the bodega’s structure was designed by boring into a hillside in order for the ageing room, which hosts 3,000 new barrels and wine racks in a 200 m tunnel excavated at almost 30 m below the vineyard, to maintain the ideal natural temperature and humidity for storing wine.

The 2009 El Vinculo is pure Tempranillo cropped at 20 hectoliters per hectare from organic vineyards and sees 18 months in American and French new oak. Deep purple/garnet in color, it offers a rich fruitcake and blackberry-scented bouquet that is nicely defined and handles the oak well. The palate is modern in style with supple, clean black cherries, wild strawberry, vanilla and orange zest. It is quite stylish, smooth and silky towards the finish.

Tempranillo pairs with all kinds of food because it’s savory. Try with: Lasagna, Pizza and dishes with tomato-based sauces Grits, Polenta and dishes with corn as a major ingredient Mexican food such as tacos, nachos, burritos and chile rellenos