Guía Peñín
The Guía Peñín , Spain's best known and most important wine guide, is the work of the Spanish wine critic José Peñín . As an experienced wine critic and writer, Peñín has been working as a wine journalist for more than 25 years and therefore knows viticulture in Spain inside and out. For the Guía Peñín, he and his team tastes wines from all wine-growing regions of Spain every year and rates them according to the 100-point scheme made famous by Robert Parker . In addition to this wine evaluation , José Peñín gives the reader a separate introduction to the topics of viticulture, winemaking, wine types, wine quality, shopping and enjoyment in his wine guide.
Team Guia Peñín
The Spanish wine guide Guia Peñín has a working group of experts who are well versed in sensory analysis by wine region for its tastings . In addition to processing databases in which over 100,000 tasting notes from all wine guide editions are stored, this working group has knowledge of the development of each brand over time and the respective international quality of the vintage . In this way, errors in the deviations in the ratings can be avoided and at the same time it can be checked whether the error or lack of a wine is due to the real quality of the brand or to the condition of the bottle. A second evaluation (second tasting) of the brand is carried out for the wines that are rated with over 93 points, with the wines that are also in this point range serving as a basis for comparison. The working group, headed by José Peñín, is composed of the following people: Carlos González (General Coordinator of the Peñín Guide), Javier Luengo (Publishing Director), Carlos del Hoyo (International Relations Manager), Erika Laymuns (Data Processing) and Maite Corsín (Wine Journalist ).
Rating System
To ensure international comparability, the Guia Peñín uses the American rating system, in which 0 is equal to 50. This evaluation system describes the different qualities of the wines according to evaluation criteria, which are divided into blocks of 10. A further subdivision was only made for the absolute top ratings of 90 to 100 points. The following descriptions of the individual levels of the evaluation scheme serve to better understand the grades.
- 95–100 points : exceptional wine
A wine that stands out among the wines of its class, its vintage and its terroir. It impresses in every way in an extraordinary way. A complex wine that pulls out all the stops in the nose and mouth and reveals first class in terms of soil, grape variety, preparation and aging. It is elegant and eccentric, which means that it stands out from market standards, which makes it appear peculiar to the general public in some features.
- 90–94 points : Excellent wine
A wine that basically offers the same advantages as an exceptional wine, but with less profile and clarity in its notes.
- 80–89 points : Very good wine
A wine that convinces through characteristics typical of the variety or through properties that it acquires during vinification and / or aging. A wine with a special character, but without any noticeable terroir notes.
- 70–79 points : acceptable wine
The wine completely meets the requirements that are placed on it in terms of its type and region of origin. He has no flaws, but also no virtues.
- 60–69 points : Correct wine
An acceptable wine with slight flaws that do not overly affect the overall impression.
- 50–59 points : Not recommended wine
A wine that is definitely harmless to health, but not recommended in terms of taste. This could be due to oxidation notes, incorrect storage or delayed bottling. It can also be an older wine that is gradually tipping over or a young wine with an unpleasant fermentation odor.
Quality pyramid
In order to reflect the actual quality that can be found on the market today, a price and quality pyramid was created for the German-language online edition of the wine guide, which is based on the experiences of wine tastings and reviews of the Spanish original.
- 90–100 points and more than 24 euros. The price can be as high as a pingus' 460 euros, although the average is between 36 and 150 euros. This category includes the best wines in Spain. The following wines can be found here: the best wines of the DOCa ( Rioja , Priorat ) and some other DO (Denominación de Origen) such as mainly Ribera del Duero , Jerez , Rías Baixas , Toro , Jumilla , Penedès , Navarra , Somontano and some table wines ( Leda, Mauro, Emeritus). Some of these wines are candidates for Vino de Pago certification.
- 80–90 points and from 9 to 36 euros. Most of these wines come from the DOs, plus some country and table wines. Those that exceed a price threshold of 24 euros are characterized by an exceptional price-performance ratio. These wines have an original expression that characterizes a particular location (these could also be candidates for Vinos de pago). An excellent price-performance ratio is available for those wines in this category that are priced around 8 euros and have a rating between 80 and 85 points, as well as those that cost around 16 euros and between 85 and 90 points have attained.
- Between 75 and 80 points and from 4 to 16 euros. Correct and thoroughly pleasant wines. There are the simplest wines from the prestigious DOs, some medium quality wines that have not yet become very successful, and a large part of country wines and some table wines.
- Less than 75 points and less than 6 euros. The worst from the Spanish DOs, some country wines and the majority of table wines.
Aspects of tasting
- Objective features
The objective characteristics are the "assessable" properties that depend neither on the condition nor on the preferences of the taster and can be understood by every wine lover. Color : intensity and transparency, e.g. B. intense color, pale etc. Aroma : intensity, faults, dominant components (e.g. wood, grape variety, a lot / little fruit, development etc.) Taste : intensity and structure, e.g. B. meaty, round, essential flavors (acidity, bitterness - tannins, sweet, salty) as well as the properties mentioned under aroma.
- Subjective impressions
The “non-assessable” characteristics and personal associations of the tasters are referred to as subjective impressions. The comparisons with known fragrances are intended to give the reader an approximate idea. Examples of colors are “golden yellow, cherry red, old gold, mahogany brown, straw yellow etc.” Aroma and taste can be described using terms such as “bread crust”, “preserves”, “cherry”, “attic” etc. It is important to know that although many Spanish wines are aged in oak barrels, they are marketed without an appropriate label such as “Roble”, “Barrica” or “Crianza”. It is becoming more and more common to mature the wines in barriques for three to four months before bottling in order to round them off in terms of taste and to give them the finishing touches.
- Type of tasting
In contrast to blind tastings and juries at the well-known competitions, the Guia Peñín team always tastes with a visible label. This is because wines with the same label and the same vintage can sometimes have deviations that result from different closures of the corks during maturation in the bottle. This doesn't have to be a flaw, but it can affect the grade in some ways. Thanks to their experience, the tasters are not fooled by labels. But because they know the history of the respective bodega, they arrive at a fairer assessment, especially since greater differences in quality are mostly the result of the natural conditions of a vintage.
The procedure for the tastings:
A first general idea is provided not only by the results of previous tastings at different locations and on the most varied of occasions, but also by knowledge of the orientation, philosophy and quality levels of a winery. Between two bottles of a brand that are the same in type and aging (Crianza, Reserva or Gran Reserva), there are seldom differences in rating of more than 3 points (e.g. 75 and 78 points), even if they belong to different vintages. Consistent improvements in winemaking and grapes, on the other hand, are more likely to receive a higher grade.
Since the tasting team is familiar with the mostly constant working method of a bodega from previous years, the misjudgments of a blind tasting can be reduced, in which sometimes the individual errors of a single bottle filling, which are not taken into account, are confused with deficiencies in winemaking and aging. which flow into the evaluation of a wine. In the case of younger bodegas or brands that are mentioned for the first time in the wine guide and that differ significantly from the previous style of a bodega, the tasters can consult with colleagues to compare their impressions.
- Time of tasting
Most of the tastings are held between late January and June 30 of the same year. This means that all samples that arrive after that are not included in the current edition of the wine guide. A time window is determined for each wine-growing region in Spain in order to cope with the high number of tastings in a relatively short time.
What's new in the 2011 Peñín Guide
For the first time in the history of the Spanish wine guide Guia Peñín, the limit of 9,000 wines tasted was exceeded this year. This shows the great variety of styles in the Spanish wine landscape, where the climate, the soil and of course the people contribute to the very special character of the wine. In this year's edition, the most noteworthy novelties are those wines that are made with local grapes. These autochthonous grape varieties have survived in the mostly remote areas and stand out twice: on the one hand, because these grape varieties are used to produce wines of high quality and expression, and on the other hand, because they emphasize the difference and the typicality of their region of origin. The main indigenous grape variety that Guia Peñín says is different from all of them is Garnacha. Grown in a variety of different soils and climates, it displays nuances clearly associated with the minerality of the soil. This year, the Galician grape varieties Godello, Mencía, Albariño, Treixadura and many more deserve special mention. All in all, these are grape varieties that add small amounts of complexity to the Galician official grapevines.
literature
- Guía Penín, Spain's Wine Guide 2012 , Heel Verlag GmbH, ISBN 978-3-86852-333-1
Individual evidence
- ↑ Spain Travel Magazine Interview with José Peñín ( Memento of the original from September 15, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ The Wine Advocate The Wine Advocate's Rating System ( Memento of the original from January 7, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. in English
- ↑ Online edition of the wine guide ( Memento of the original dated November 1, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Vienna May 18, 2011 How do 100 points taste? ( Memento of the original from July 17, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ literature.de The literature portal Guía Peñín 2011 - vintage guide for Spanish wines
