This is a very interesting wine that forces wine lovers to declare their allegiance to old-style Spanish wines or take sides with the new guard.  This wine is the epitome of the new guard.

Jumilla is a region in the south of Spain, near the coastal Meditteranean town of Valencia which had never produced wines of international acclaim in the past.  They now have their targets set clearly at the palates of America's most influential wine critics.  These wines seem to be a whole world different than the old guard of Spanish wines such as those from Rioja, in the country's northern areas.


Clio is a wine from a "winery" called Bodegas El Nido.  The winery is a joint venture started by the Gil family (of hijos de Juan Gil) and wine importer Jorge Ordonez, who has been importing wines that seem to ring true with Robert Parker.  The third member of this wine venture is Australian winemaker Chris Ringland, who is also a Robert Parker fave.  So in essence, you have Mr. Parker's favorite Australian wine maker paired up with his favorite importer and one of his favorite producers of value priced Spanish wine.  If each one of these folks has a special place on the palate of America's most influential wine critic, then surely putting all three together must produce a wine tailor made to his taste.  Ya think?  Well, you're right.  In the two years this wine has been produced, it has scored 93 and 96 points.  El Nido's more expensive wine, simply called "el Nido" has garnered scores of 96 and 97 points.  The Clio retails for about $40, and the El Nido for about $130.

The wine comes in a heavy glass bottle with graphics and font to convey an artsey image.  The wine is a blend of 70% monastrell (same grape as the French Mourvedre), and 30% Cabernet Sauvignon.The wine itself has a dark saturated color.  The wine has enough alcohol to give off some slight whiffs of ethanol to the bouquet, which is otherwise characterized by underbrush , ground cofee, and mixed black fruit.  The wine was a little hot on the palate (too high in alcohol), but packed a lot of fruit, and a lot of tannin.  I thought it drank a little more civilized the following day after decanting overnight.  The wine had a long but rough finish, a little too tannic for me.  The wine is listed on the label as 15.5% alcohol, but given the lattitude allowed by the ATF when labeling the bottles, it would not surpise me if this wine were closer to 16%.

Overall, I thought the wine was good, but there are plenty of other wines I would prefer in the forty dollar range.  If you want to get turned on to Spanish wines, there are a lot of great Spanish Rioja's for that price (made from Tempranillo grape, rather than Monastrell).  Or for those who like Monastrell/Mourvedre, you might want to look at wines from Bandol France, which drink better, in my opionion, and for less money.

Even though I was luke-warm on this wine, several friends of mine really like it a lot.  As I said earlier, you just have to decide if you like the tamer, easier drinking traditional wines from Rioja (or Priorat or Ribera del Duero), or the new wines with much higher tannin, fruit, and alcohol.  So who should stay away from this wine?  Probably those whose tastes run towards right bank Bordeaux, aged Brunello, Chianti, and California meritage wines.  And who should try this wine?  I would heartily recomend it to lovers of Petite Syrah, young Zins, young tannic Cabs, and some of the new-age Aussie Grenache-Mataro wines and GSM blends.

If you like your wines wild, drink this one now.  If you like them a little more civilzed, give this one a few years.

3.25 stars

 

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