Pedernales Cellars, High Plains (Texas) Tempranillo 2012

This is a highly convincing rendition of Tempranillo, and aside from a couple of examples from Argentina, Washington and southern Oregon, it looks better than any Tempranillo I’ve seen outside of Spain.  Medium-bodied, with fine fruit that recalls red cherries and berries showing no hint of over-ripeness, the wine draws structure from fresh acidity and fine-grained tannins that are very well balanced against the moderate weight of the fruit.  Thankfully, the winemaker didn’t commit the chronic error of outside-of-Spain makers of Tempranillo, which is to oak it within an inch of its life in a mistaken effort to emulate Rioja.  Very well done!