Wine of the week: El Coto Rioja Blanco 2022
by Wine Curmudgeon Posted On
This long-time WC favorite is as fresh and delicious as ever
Twelve years ago, I got a sample of the 2010 vintage of this wine and tasted it for the first time. My tasting notes: “Very nicely done — a bit of lemon and very clean, very crisp.”
Which is more or less what my tasting notes say for the current vintage of the El Coto white. Is it any wonder I’ve been drinking it — availability willing, of course – since then?
Because, in Dallas at least, availability has been a problem. That’s one reason why I was so glad to get this sample, since it meant the wine should be for sale around here.
The 2022 version ($12, sample, 12%) is a little softer and more round in the mouth than I remember, but still focused on lemon fruit and that clean, crisp finish that this kind of wine does so well, thanks to the viura grape.
Highly recommended, and if it’s not quite a Hall of Fame wine this vintage, it’s damn close. Drink this chilled on its own, with salads, or with something like spaghetti and clam sauce (and use the wine to make the clam sauce).
Imported by Opici Wine & Spirits