2008
Montecielo Rioja 2007
Now to the lowest rated red, Montecielo Rioja, which was also the cheapest red we tasted.
There was down the middle division on this one between those who liked it, some quite a lot, and those who found it completely horrid. Nobody was ambivalent.
In the glass it was clear and fairly light coloured, with some calling it thin. One person described it as cranberry coloured, otherwise most opted for ruby.
Everyone agreed that there was little fruit in the aroma, but after that opinion diverged, with some finding pleasant woody and spicy scents, others feeling it smelled yeasty, unpleasant or even “off”.
While most people described the flavour as being soft, those who didn’t called it astringent, which seems something of a polar opposite. Comments ranged from “harsh unpleasant wine” and “dog rough” to “easy and pleasant to drink” and “soft slightly spicy flavour, would happily drink this on its own”.
All of which, I suppose, goes to show that taste in wine is a very individual thing.
When it came to whether people would buy it or not there was a notable absence of “maybes” - half said they would buy it and half that they wouldn’t.
Price: €4.99
Score: 11
There was a wider spread of scores for this wine than any other, ranging from a low of just 6 to a high of 15. So although the overall score is low, it seems it’s a great bargain for some, a waste of money for others.
Tags: Rioja, Wine, Wine Tasting
August 17th, 2008 at 8:20 pm
Could it have been slightly corked? I stopped buying the Lidl Tarragona Reserva a few years back as about one out of three bottles was corked.
August 17th, 2008 at 11:38 pm
I don’t think so, it either had a synthetic cork or a screw cap, I can’t remember which - or can you get corked wine without having actual cork?
August 18th, 2008 at 8:29 am
Kate,
You can have a corked wine regardless of the closure method. So even though it may have been closed with a screw cap or synthetic cork it may still have been off.
Cheers,
Will
August 18th, 2008 at 10:34 am
Well maybe that was it then. Though it is odd that some people liked it, everyone was tasting from the same bottle. I tasted it (though my scores are not counted) and while I didn’t like it, I didn’t think it was off either - just nasty. But I’m definitely no expert!
September 22nd, 2009 at 12:38 pm
This is my regular tipple. I live on the Costa del Sol, so of course it’s a lot cheaper here. BUT Lidl sell this wine at 2 different prices here and the dearer one (2 euros 50 approx) is much better. The quality is not consistent, however, varying from barely acceptable (rare) to really excellent. If it’s not so good we use it for Tinto de Verano, which is red wine and gaseosa (like lemonade) drunk chilled. In the summer the Spanish keep all their wine in the fridge, which can also improve it. You let it warm to room temperature before drinking.