Cune Reserva 2020

Cune Reserva is made by CVNE from estate vineyards in Rioja Alta, the cooler, higher western part of the D.O.Ca. Rioja, blending Tempranillo with a little Garnacha. The clay and limestone soils and the altitude here give wines with fresh acidity and the structure to age, and the fruit is hand harvested. After roughly ten days of alcoholic fermentation the wine goes through malolactic fermentation, which converts sharper malic acid to softer lactic acid and rounds the palate. It is then aged for around eighteen months in French and American oak, followed by a further two years in bottle, the long ageing that defines a Reserva. The barrel time softens tannins through slow oxygen exchange and adds vanilla, sweet spice and a savoury, leathery complexity, while the bottle ageing knits everything together. The wine is medium to full bodied, showing ripe forest fruits, cherry and strawberry on the nose with liquorice, vanilla and gentle spice. The palate is smooth and balanced, the tannins resolved and the finish long and savoury. This is also a vegan wine. Serve at 16 to 18 degrees with roast lamb or beef.