Gritty

AT LAST!! I can taste again. 2003 was a hot hot year in Europe, so it must have been blistering in Murcia in Spain (this is normally a hot, arid region - I've sweated it out driving around vineyards there in the past) where tonight's wine comes from. The Casa de la Ermita, Crianza, Jumilla, 2003 spent 9 months in "new oak". Now, this could mean big oak vats or the smaller, expensive barriques (or if they're cheating, new planks or staves shoved into old barrels or, horror of horrors, oak chips). Lets give them the benefit of the doubt, but there's no clue to the new oak on the nose or palate of this wine. It is dark in the glass with chalk and plums on the nose. Smooth and medium bodied, but with a grittiness to it, this one has notes of meat, beetroot and black fruit. A dirty wine, very old school. I kind of like it, I rate it as "good". Is it worth the $18? Well, put it this way, I don't intend to buy any more of this vintage.
Cheers!!