Bodegas Volver Monastrell "Triga" 2017
(Alicante, Spain) - [WS 92] [WA 90]

About the Winery:
Triga, a project of Bodegas Volver, was founded in 2004 as a joint effort between importer Jorge Ordonez and oenologist Rafael Canizares. (Jorge Ordonez is literally the guy who single-handedly re-introduced Spanish wines to America around 1987. As one of the most influential people in the Spanish wine world, any of his selections are sure to please!) Canizares recently bought out Ordonez and now owns 100% of the project. He makes use of the talents of Aussie superstar winemaker Chris Ringland, who has produced four 100-point wines, as well as two 99-pointers. The winery is located in Alicante near the largest marble quarry in the world!

The grapes come from five vineyards, one of which was planted in 1925. Four vineyards of Monastrell located in the Sierra de Salinas, Umbria and La Sima. The vineyard of Cabernet Sauvignon is in the Sierra de Salinas and was planted in 1981. Altitude 600-750 metres above sea level. Fossilized limey soils with an upper layer of limestones. Planted in low system.

Winemaking:
Using of only native yeasts. Only the oldest vineyards are used for the creation of Triga. The vines are carefully monitored throughout all their stages and processes – pruning, blossoming, fructification, ripening and harvest and only the best parcels are selected. These vineyards have very low production. Each parcel is harvested, produced and aged separately. The best bunches are selected in the vineyard and later sorted on the selection table at the winery. After maceration in vats of 5,000kg they pass to the vertical press.

Tasting Notes:
Opaque purple with explosive aromas of black and blue fruits are transformed into notes of licorice, Indian spices and flower oils. Rich and long, it has a good acidity that lends elegance. In the mouth, sweet blueberries and red currants mark the palate with persistence in a spicy and a concentrated finish. Tobacco, chocolate and herbal flavors ride high on a full, extracted finish.

Ratings & Reviews

17.5/20 Points - Jancis Robinson:

"Roasted coffee and toasted wood. It has a great flavour, integrated tannin and is very sweet due to its volume and depth. Assertive, showy, a powerful monster. The creaminess of this wine is extraordinary.

Monastrell, Cabernet Sauvignon. Five vineyards planted in 1925 in Sierra de Salinas, Umbria and La Sima (the Cabernet plot is from 1981), all of them with rich chalky soils and at elevations between 650 and 750 m. Selection of the best bunches, and alcoholic fermentation in stainless-steel vats. Aged for 22 months in French oak barrels."

92 Points - Wine Spectator:
"This broad, generous red offers inky layers of black cherry reduction, plum paste and Earl Grey tea flavors woven together with espresso, vanilla and rose petal details. Hints of tar, herb and hot stone come along on the finish, with thick tannins. Monastrell and Cabernet Sauvignon. 1,500 cases made, 400 cases imported." - GS (Oct 2021)

90 Points - Wine Advocate:
"The profile of the 2017 Triga is similar to that of its siblings—notes of barbecued meat, fried corn, very ripe and jammy fruit and a lush, decadent mouthfeel with notes of wood and cola nut. For fans of super ripe, concentrated and oaky reds. It's 85% Monastrell and 15% Cabernet Sauvignon." - Luis Gutierrez (Apr 2022)

93 Points - Vinous (2016 vintage):
Glass-staining ruby. Heady aromas of ripe dark berries and candied licorice take on spice, vanilla and smoky nuances with aeration. Deeply concentrated and round on the palate, offering powerful black currant, cherry-vanilla and blueberry flavors that are given spine by a core of smoky minerality. Shows impressive power and spicy thrust on the persistent, dark-fruit-dominated finish, which is framed by chewy, steadily building tannins. There's nothing shy here. (Drink between 2023-2031)

93 Points - Wine Enthusiast (2018 vintage):
Inky ruby in color, this wine has a nose of black currant, purple fig, butterscotch and crumbled sage. A framework of rigorous tannins plays host to fruits of the wood, caramel, dried hillside herb and clove flavors. The finish is marked with a bright note of orange zest. — Mike DeSimone