Jesús Yllera 2019

Yllera produces this red in Boada de Roa, in the D.O. Ribera del Duero, from around 150 hectares of vineyard farmed for low yields and concentrated fruit. The Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Tempranillo vines are 45 to 50 years old, gobelet trained and planted between 700 and 1,000 metres on clay and sand soils. That altitude brings a wide diurnal swing, with warm days ripening the fruit and cold nights preserving acidity and colour, while the poor clay-sand soils restrain vigour and push the old vines towards small, concentrated berries. The wine spends twelve months in French oak barrels, where slow oxygen exchange softens the tannins and adds spice and a fine grain of toast without masking the fruit. It is deep ruby in the glass, with ripe plum and black cherry on the nose lifted by cocoa, vanilla and dried tobacco, and a savoury earthiness that reflects the elevated continental site. The palate is full and firm, carried by ripe tannins and a long finish. Serve at 16 to 18 degrees, decanting an hour ahead, alongside roast lamb or grilled beef.