Re: Query on Spanish wine

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The above is one of the few sites I found in English that might help. You can find several pages at Google, but most are not in English and Google's translations sometimes leave much to be desired.

The winery name is Montevannos,S.A., and they are in the famous Ribera del Duero region that includes Vega Sicilia and Pesquera. The winery has a web page, but it was not working. Their address is E 09450 Banos de Valdearados(Burgos). They have a storage capacity of 2,600,000 L. Their turnover is 360,000 L per year. About 70% of their wine is exported. They make several wines all named Monte Vannos followed by Rosado, Tinto, Crianza, or Reserva. I did not see a review for the 1990 Reserva, but a Reserva of another year was rated as about 8+ out of 10 points.

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The king of Ribera del Duero is Vega Sicilia Unico. It has been around about 100 years, and some have called it the Romanee-Conti of Spain. It is made more from Bordeaux varieties of grapes than from Spanish ones. A label on a bottle of the 1953 states: "Elaborado con uvas: Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, Merlot, tinto fino y albillo". If one looks at the label of the 1968 there is no mention of the grapes. However Ribera del Duero, Denominacion de Origen now appears on the front label. On the back is a Garantia de Origen for Ribera del Duero Gran Reserva. Of course many of the other wines from the region use mostly native Spanish grapes. Many are made in a more modern style to be drinkable early. A classic Vega Sicilia Unico often was kept about 10 years in wood, and might require many more years to peak after bottling.