Gutierrez de la Vega Casta Diva Cosecha Miel 2024

Casta Diva Cosecha Miel is a sweet Moscatel from Gutierrez de la Vega in Alicante, made from vineyards around the coastal town of Javea. The soils there are chalky and the vines average around forty years of age, trained low to the ground in the Y shape used in arid zones to manage scarce water. Moscatel grown in this warm, dry climate ripens to high sugar while keeping aromatic intensity, and the wine is made in a honeyed late-harvest style rather than a dark oxidative one. It spends thirteen months in a mix of French, American and Hungarian oak barrels, which adds a light vanilla frame and rounds the texture without burying the fruit. The colour is bright gold. The nose is honey, apricot and orange marmalade lifted by white flowers and the typical grapey perfume of Moscatel. The palate is sweet and lush but kept fresh by a clear citrus acidity, with white peach and candied peel running into a clean finish. This balance of sweetness and lift is what keeps it from feeling heavy. Serve well chilled in a small glass with fruit tarts, light sponge cakes or a fresh goats' cheese.