This is a special bottling from Bodegas Vatan, essentially one of the property's premier cuvées in a fancy new label. In case you are curious, that is a portrait of Victor Hugo on the label. This wine was created for a family of top-tier national steak houses. You know the type: $100 steaks, 30-page wine list, venture capital expense accounts. While we cannot share the name of the specific bottling, the dining establishment, or the AMEX Black card number, we can emphatically state that this wine is an absolute steal at just $22 per bottle. Upon tasting the initial sample presented to us, we jumped right on board to bring this wine to your dining table or wine cellar. 

Crafted by World-renowned importer and consulting winemaker Jorge Ordóñez, the 2022 Bodegas Vatan "Vivian Lewis Art & Wine Series" Tempranillo is a monovarietal (100% Tinta de Toro, otherwise known as Tempranillo) sourced from old, gnarly vines that yield ultra-ripe fruit. Aged in oak for 12 months before bottling, it is redolent with black raspberries and cassis laced with baking spices and mocha on the nose and palate. 
 
Press:
93 points, James Suckling:
"Fine spices, blackberries, cocoa powder, and graphite. This is juicy and flavorful on the palate, with a full body and a heap of dusty tannins. Tight, structured, and pretty long. Approachable now, but better from 2025."
 
92 points, Vinous:
"This is made from ungrafted vines in Toro. It was racked sweet and aged in barrel. Dark garnet in color, it delivers black fruit aromas of black cherry and plum, along with black olive, balsamic, and a touch of blackberry. Juicy and broad, it offers rich fruit and a delicately structured mouthfeel for the region with lovely tannins in a warm vintage."