The reason I’m so crazy about these wines is because they are from an area just south and west of Rioja known as Ribera del Duero. This area is slightly warmer than Rioja, with a subspecies of Tempranillo that is slightly smaller with thicker skins. What that means is you can get Rioja style wines with greater concentration of flavour and tannin structure.
So, the Malabrigo. On the nose this is an oak heavy wine, along with some really savoury characteristics like balsamic, liquorice, and earth. It immediately tells you that it is a food wine! Tasting it the first thing I was struck by was the wickedly tight acidity and really well integrated tannins! The fruit profile is dark and dense; black plum, black currant, and blueberry. As well on the palate there is more of that earthy, balsamic, smoky wood goodness as on the nose. The finish is long and gives some notes of dried fruit and flowers, pretty impressive considering this is only 2019. This would be an outstanding wine to cellar for 5-15 more years, if you can wait that long to enjoy it! As for pairing, the acidity gives this wine some versatility, Cepa 21 even recommends this wine with sushi! Personally I like to pair wines with local cuisine, so with that in mind I’d be thinking Albondigas - beef and pork meatballs simmered in a tomato sauce, or Bacalao - a salted cod dish.