Ataulfos 2018

Ataulfos is a single-vineyard Garnacha from Jiménez-Landi in D.O. Méntrida, named after the one-and-a-half-hectare plot the fruit comes from. The vines are around sixty years old, bush trained and organically farmed on sandy soils of silica origin at 830 metres, where continental and Mediterranean influences meet. The altitude and poor sandy soils hold yields low and lend the wine freshness and a fine, savoury structure that sets it apart from warmer, jammier Garnacha. After harvest the wine spends twenty months in French oak, a long ageing that settles the tannins and adds spice through gradual oxidation while the sandy-soil character keeps the fruit lifted. It is bright ruby with a deep core. The nose shows red berries and plum with black pepper, thyme and dried herbs over a stony, earthy base. The palate is medium to full, the tannins fine and firm, with good acidity carrying a long, savoury, mineral finish. This is old-vine Garnacha built on freshness rather than weight. Serve at 16 to 17 degrees. Good with lamb, game and roast red meats. From organic viticulture.