Lecco Reserva 2019

Lecco Reserva is a varietal Tempranillo from Bodegas Resalte de Peñafiel in D.O. Ribera del Duero. The fruit comes from vineyards of 40 years and older planted across several soil types, and that variation is deliberate: differing proportions of clay, limestone and sand give the grapes a range of characteristics that combine into a more complex blend than a single plot would yield. Ribera del Duero sits high on the Castilian plateau, where hot days and cold nights slow ripening, fix colour and hold acidity, giving Tempranillo here its dark fruit and firm structure. Alcoholic and malolactic fermentation take place in stainless steel, the latter softening the wine before it goes to barrel. Eighteen months in French and American oak follow: French oak lends fine-grained spice and structure, American oak more overt vanilla and coconut, while slow oxygen ingress through the staves builds the tannin into a polished frame. It is deep cherry red moving to garnet. The nose shows ripe plum and black cherry, cocoa, tobacco and sweet oak spice. The palate is powerful and structured, with a long, savoury finish. Serve at 17 degrees, decanted. It calls for roast red meat.