The Celler del Roure Cullerot Blanco 2012 is an unusual blend of Verdil, Pedro Ximenez, Macabeo and Chardonnay sourced from an estate vineyard located near the town of Moixent in Valencia, Spain. Verdil is a grape indigenous to the region that was nearly extinct, there are only a little over 100 acres of these vines under cultivation today. Pedro Ximenez is a grape use in the production of sweet Sherry, Macabeo is one of the 3 grapes traditionally used for Cava Sparkling wine and Chardonnay, well you know Chardonnay, it is the #1 best-selling wine varietal in the world. This blend was fermented using natural yeast, meaning that they only used yeast floating in the air to start fermentation, no extra yeast was added. And if all that does not make the Cullerot Blanco a very singular wine, it was aged in clay amphorae for 6 months (just like they did in the old, old days).
The color is a cloudy lemon yellow, cloudy because the wine is unfiltered, again just like the old days. The nose is familiar, peaches, ripe and juicy, honeysuckle and lemon. The Cullerot Blanco is both tart and mellow, crisp, clean and refreshing. It tastes of lemon/lime, melon, green apple and grapefruit. The wine has a supple body and acidity is well-balanced, this is an excellent food wine. The finish is full and lengthy.
The Celler del Roure Cullerot Blanco 2012 is a very unique blend, an odd, but interesting choice of grapes made using some ancient production methods. The flavors are familiar, but it does not exactly taste like any other White wine blend. This is a bright, delicious wine, it will stand up to spicy food and Tapas. If you are looking for Cullerot in your local wine shop, the importer is Eric Solomon/European Cellars, any decent establishment will know how to find it.
