When I see a 14.5 percenter from Southern Spain, majoring on Monastrell, I’m already scared. Am I ready for the tar, the big, burly tannins, the overbearing, dark, savouriness of it all?
That’s what I was thinking when I uncorked this wine, but praise the lord – this Monastrell-heavy blend (80%) is utterly charming, and just loaded with bright, pure fruit. For sure, it’s dark berries – the whole crushed blackcurrant and bilberry compote shabang. But it’s gorgeous. Fermented in (as they charmingly say – small!) 10,000 litre steel tanks, it is so refreshing to taste fruit rather than the after-effects of oak ageing.
The sun, ripeness and ABV haven’t created something heavy here, but rather something utterly joyful and sun-soaked. It’s also rather silky in terms of texture, certainly channelling the syrah. I really can’t fault it.