Gago 2020

Gago is the Tinta de Toro of Telmo Rodríguez in DO Toro, where the winery works the local strain of Tempranillo from old vines over forty years old around the town of Zamora. The vineyards sit on east-facing slopes at 650 metres, on well-drained soils of varying texture with deep gravel. Altitude is decisive in this hot, dry region: the cold nights at elevation preserve acidity and aromatic freshness, while the old, low-yielding vines and the poor gravel soils concentrate the fruit and rein in Toro's natural power. After a hand-harvest the wine ferments and then ages fourteen months in French oak, where the slow oxygen exchange softens the grape's firm tannins and adds a smoky, spicy frame to the dark fruit. The 2020 shows the restrained power Toro is known for, with maturity balanced by freshness. The nose reveals ripe black fruit, liquorice, black pepper and a mineral echo, with a smoky, earthy edge from the oak. The palate is full bodied and structured, with firm ripe tannins, good acidity and a long savoury finish at a measured thirteen and a half per cent. Serve at 16 to 18 degrees, decanting an hour ahead. It calls for grilled and roast red meat.