Fruita Analogica Comfortably Numb 2023

Comfortably Numb is made by Vinyes Tortuga, the natural-wine project of Dido and Jurriaan, a Dutch couple working 9.5 hectares from a Catalan farmhouse with minimal intervention. It is an unusual blend of the Garnacha family, red, grey and white together, co-fermented into a pale, light red. Catalonia's warm days are tempered by cooler nights and coastal or altitude influence, which keeps this thin-skinned grape fresh rather than heavy, and the low 11.5 per cent alcohol reflects an early pick and a light hand. The wine spent around six months in fibreglass tanks rather than oak. That inert vessel adds no flavour of its own and lets a little oxygen in through the lees, so the fruit stays bright and unmarked while the texture rounds out. As a low-intervention wine it is made with little or no added sulphur and is best treated gently. The nose is fresh and floral, with strawberry, cherry and a hint of blackberry lifted by a herbal, balsamic note; the palate is light, juicy and savoury, with soft tannins and a clean finish. Serve lightly chilled at 13 to 14 degrees. Good with light dishes and charcuterie.