Bouza Tannat B6 Parcela Única 2023

Bouza is a family winery in Canelones, the wine heartland of southern Uruguay just inland from Montevideo. The region sits at a similar latitude to other temperate New World zones, with clay-rich soils that recall parts of France and an Atlantic-influenced climate that slows ripening and keeps acidity firm. Tannat, brought from south-west France, has become Uruguay's signature grape, and on this clay it builds the thick skins and high tannin that give the wine its frame. This is a single-parcel bottling, vinified to express one site. Ageing runs to eighteen months in a mix of French and American oak, where slow oxygen exchange through the barrel softens the grape's naturally severe tannins and adds vanilla, sweet spice and a measure of structure for the cellar. The wine is deep and opaque in the glass. The nose shows black plum, cocoa and leather over cedar and pepper from the wood. The palate is full and dense, carried by ripe dark fruit and a grippy, savoury tannin that holds the long finish. Serve at 17 to 18 degrees and decant an hour ahead. It suits grilled red meat and aged hard cheese.