Bodegas y Viñedos San Román Garnacha 2023

Bodegas y Viñedos San Román sits in the DO Toro in Castilla y León, north west Spain, and is the second venture of Mariano García, long associated with Bodegas Mauro. When he arrived in 1997, Garnacha was being uprooted across Toro, and this single variety bottling is part of the effort to bring it back. Toro is a high, continental plateau where vines endure hot, dry days and sharply cooler nights. That wide diurnal range is key, ripening the fruit fully while preserving acidity and freshness, so a 15 percent alcohol wine still feels balanced. The poor, sandy and stony soils force low yields of concentrated fruit. Garnacha is a thin skinned, late ripening grape that thrives in this heat, giving generous ripe fruit and warmth. The wine is aged for 20 months in 500 litre French oak barrels, a larger format that lets in oxygen gently and frames the fruit with savoury spice rather than heavy wood. The result is deep, dark red with aromas of ripe red berries, plum, black pepper and dried thyme. The palate is full and warming, with concentrated fruit, fine tannins, a liquorice edge and an earthy, savoury finish. Serve at 16 to 18 degrees. It suits roast lamb and grilled red meat.