Today we continue visiting the vineyards of Navarra. We start in the city of Olite - app. 30 km (19 miles) south of Pamplona. Here we find several wine producers, among them Bodega Marco Real. Its the first bodega (winery) when you drive into the town on the right hand side.
Marco Real is a new venture established in 1988. It has about 200 hectares (500 acres) of vineyard and it produces the “standard” wines in Navarra; a young wine, crianza and reserva. These are OK wines but nothing special.
However they have just invested a lot of money in a new winery to produce a top quality wine called Senorio de Andión. And this effort will be exciting to follow over the next couple of years. The wine is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Tempranillo and Graciano from old vines. I tasted the vintage 2001, which had been aged for 15 months in French oak and had a light clarifying with egg whites (no filtering).
The wine itself has a dark cherry-red color. In the nose you’ll find ripe fruit, blackberry, minerals and some vanilla. It is full-bodied with a good concentration, fine structure and soft tannins. I scored it 89-90 pts. It’s not that easy to find but the price should be around €30 /$38.
If you find it - buy it!
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