Esmeralda García Arenas de SantYuste 2024

Esmeralda García farms old Verdejo vines in Santiuste de San Juan Bautista, a village in Segovia in the high country of Castilla y León. Her pre-phylloxera vineyards are over 140 years old and grow on their own ungrafted roots in deep sandy soils, the arenas that give the wine its name and that historically protected the vines from phylloxera. These sandy soils drain freely and, combined with the vineyard's altitude on the northern Castilian plateau, give wide day to night temperature swings that lock in aromatics and acidity. Old vines of this age yield very little fruit but with real concentration and depth. The wine is made with a natural, low intervention approach and aged in stainless steel, with no oak, so the focus stays on the grape and the site. Verdejo shows its herbal, savoury side here rather than any tropical ripeness. The wine is pale gold and opens with green apple, lemon, pear and wild herbs over a stony, saline base. The palate is dry and fresh, with bright acidity, a light savoury bitterness typical of the grape and a clean, herb tinged finish. Serve at 9 to 11 degrees. It works well as an aperitif and with fish.