OT: Jarrarte 2008 Crianza

For a special occasion

• Winery: Abel Mendoza Monge. Carretera Peñacerrada, 7. San Vicente de la Sonsierra (La Rioja)
• Phone: +34 941 308 010
• Winemaker: Maite Fernández Mendoza 
• Website: N/A
• Brand: Jarrarte 2008
• DO: Denominacion de Origen Cualificada Rioja Subzone: Rioja Alta.
• Type: Red Crianza Wine 13.5 % aged for 12 months in Allier French oak barrels for one to three years old
• Grapes Variety: 100% Tempranillo 
• Vineyards: Abel Mendoza is a very small artisan producer who handcrafts his wines from his own vineyards, with an average age of 35 years, that surround the village of San Vicente de la Sonsierra in Rioja Alta.
• Soil: Calcareous clay with sandstone
• Bottle Size: 75.0cl.
• Price: It was a gift, available at €15.60 
• My wine rating: 9.5/10

This small winery is owned by Abel Mendoza (vine growing) and Maite Fernández (winekmaking), a husband and wife team based in San Vicente de la Sonsierra. Their wines are among the most interesting, rare and sought-after in Rioja, in part due to their aversion to all things related to wine guides, events and media. They are the equivalent of those Burgundian vignerons who lovingly tend their vines to create personal wines which are faithful expressions of terroir.

Established in 1988, the winery owns 16 hectares of organic vines in San Vicente and adjoining villages. Jarrarte was the initial brand, but it is now reserved for the young red wine. Other bottlings are sold under the Abel Mendoza name. White wines are particularly interesting, specially given the limited size of the vineyard. Single varietal bottlings include Viura, Malvasía, Garnacha Blanca, Torrontés, Tempranillo Blanco and a blend of all five varieties. They are all fermented and raised in French oak for five months. Abel Mendoza Malvasía has citrus and fine smoked notes, good volume in the palate and a pleasant combination of sweet and acid nuances. Garnacha Blanca shows a meaty character and abundant ripe white fruit. Although slightly less defined, Abel Mendoza Torrontés has a unique character as it is one of the few -if not the only one- single varietal of the rare Torrontés in Rioja.

Tempranillo forms the basis of most of Abel Mendoza’s reds. Jarrarte Crianza, aged in oak for 12 months (€16), is all about fresh fruit and liveliness on the palate. The best Tempranillo plot is selected each vintage to make Abel Mendoza Selección Personal (€33). A selection of grapes from different plots are destemmed by hand and used for Tempranillo Grano a Grano (€44, only 2,000 bottles), a red wine with great depth, polished tannins and round texture. Graciano Grano a Grano (€43) brings on the vibrant acidity of this variety but will benefit from some extra time in the bottle before consumption. (From Spanish Wine Lover)

Film Notes: Laura (1944) directed by Otto Preminger

Esta entrada es bilingüe, para ver la versión en castellano desplazarse hacia abajo

Laura (1944) / USA / 88 minutes / bw / Twentieth Century Fox / Dir: Otto Preminger Pro: Otto Preminger Scr: Jay Dratler, Samuel Hoffenstein, and Betty Reinhardt Story: based on a novel by Vera Caspary Cine: Joseph La Shelle Mus: David Raksin Cast: Gene Tierney (Laura Hunt), Dana Andrews (Mark McPherson), Clifton Webb (Waldo Lydecker), Vincent Price (Shelby Carpenter), Judith Anderson (Ann Treadwell) Release Date: 11 October 1944 (USA)

Summary Plot: While investigating the brutal murder of Laura Hunt, New York police lieutenant Mark McPherson calls on erudite columnist Waldo Lydecker, a close friend of the dead woman. Waldo knows of Mark from his heroic battles with gangsters, and Mark points out that Waldo once wrote a story about a murder committed with a shotgun loaded with buckshot–the very way that Laura was killed. Claiming to be intrigued by crime, Waldo asks to accompany Mark on his investigation, and the two men call on Laura’s aunt, the wealthy Ann Treadwell. Mark inquires about Ann’s relationship with Laura’s fiancé, Shelby Carpenter, citing evidence that she has been giving him money. Just then, Shelby, a charming Southerner, arrives and says that he and Laura were to have been married that week, but Waldo insists that when Laura canceled their dinner date on the night of the murder, she had not yet decided whether to go through with the wedding (Read full summary at American Film Institute here)

Laura (1944) is one of the most stylish, elegant, moody, and witty classic film noirs ever made with an ensemble cast of characters. Producer Otto Preminger ultimately ended up directing the film, after filming was begun by Rouben Mamoulian and his cinematographer Lucien Ballard. Preminger’s film falls under the category of romantic, melodramatic mystery/detective thriller. It might also be called a psychological study of deviant, kinky obsession, because almost everyone in the cast loves the title character – Laura. One lobby poster dramatically declared: “The story of a love that became the most fearful thing that ever happened to a woman.” (Read full review at Filmsite Movie Review)

In 1999 Laura was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant”.

Notas de cine: Laura (1944), dirigida por Otto Preminger

Argumento: El detective Mark McPherson investiga el asesinato de Laura, una elegante y seductora mujer que aparece muerta en su apartamento. McPherson elabora un retrato mental de la joven a partir de las declaraciones de sus allegados. El sugestivo retrato de Laura, que cuelga de la pared de su apartamento, también le ayuda en esta tarea. (Film Affinity)

Laura es una película redonda, única e irrepetible. La sólida estructura narrativa, sus bien perfilados personajes, los brillantes diálogos y un final de mano maestra están conducidos por la dirección de un Preminger lúcido, seguro, preciso, con absoluto control sobre la obra. (Ver la reseña completa en Miradas de cine)

En 1999 Laura fue seleccionada para su conservación en el Registro Nacional de Cine de Estados Unidos por la Biblioteca del Congreso como “cultural, histórica o estéticamente significativa”.