Las Beatas 2020

Las Beatas is the work of Telmo Rodriguez and his partner Pablo Eguzkiza at Bodega Lanzaga, from a single old vineyard in Labastida in Rioja Alavesa, set at the foot of the Sierra de Cantabria. It is a field blend of four varieties grown together, Tempranillo with Graciano, Garnacha Tinta and a little Garnacha Blanca, farmed biodynamically and sustainably. The site sits on the poor limestone and clay soils typical of the Alavesa, terraced and steep, where the Sierra de Cantabria shelters the vines from the north and the altitude brings cool nights that preserve acidity, floral aromatics and fine tannin. Co-fermenting the varieties together, as the old growers did, knits them into one wine rather than a blend of parts. Ageing is 15 months in foudre, large old oak casks that shape the wine through slow oxygen exchange while adding little wood flavour. It shows a bright medium red, with a perfumed nose of violet, red cherry and redcurrant over dried herbs, tobacco and savoury spice. The palate is elegant and fresh, with fine-grained tannin and a long, mineral finish. Serve at 16 to 17 degrees, decanted. It suits roast lamb, beef and game.