| Review: |
"Vijariego Blanco, also known as Diego, is thought to have been introduced in the Canaries from Andalucía and is not a mutation of Vijariego. There are multiple spellings, most notably Vijariego and Vijiriego, even Bujariego in La Palma, but this name is not allowed anymore. It’s a grape with high acidity and lowish alcohol, so it’s often used for sparkling wines. The 2020 Vijariego Blanco is only 11.2% alcohol with a low pH of 3.14 and notable acidity, 7.5 grams (measured in tartaric acid per liter), so it's a light and sharp wine true to the variety. It fermented with indigenous yeasts in 500-liter oak barrels, where it matured with lees for 10 months. It's floral and vibrant, the latest-ripening grape here, with more freshness. It's a wine that should develop nicely in bottle. This is a little shy compared with its siblings, but it's a wine that will gain with time in bottle. 1,320 bottles were filled in June 2021. Tamerán is a new project in Gran Canaria from football player David Jiménez Silva, who was born on the island. He has 20 hectares of 20-year-old vines plus 1.5 hectares recently planted in the village of San Bartolomé de Tirajana in the warmer south of the island, where he has the winery and produces 14,000 bottles with the help of Jonatan García of Suertes del Marqués (La Orotava, Tenerife). They purchased the property that was already planted and then converted it to organic viticulture. They are only starting (first vintage is 2020), and both 2020 and 2021 have been dry and warm, so they harvested early and avoided malolactic fermentation (they produce a majority of white). In 2020, all the oak was new; all foudres and barrels are from Stockinger, a producer that seems to produce containers that are quite respectful with the character of the wines, but even so, there might be some creaminess that should fade in future vintages." |