Tomás Postigo Verdejo Fermentado Barrica 2023

Tomás Postigo makes this single varietal Verdejo in V.T. Castilla y León, drawing on the palate he honed over nearly three decades as the winemaker behind a benchmark Ribera del Duero estate. The vines sit at around 750 metres near Serrada, in Valladolid, where the altitude drives a wide day to night temperature swing that slows ripening and holds the grape's natural acidity. That freshness is the counterweight to the winemaking, which is deliberately rich. The wine ferments and then ages twelve months in French oak, and the extended time on its lees adds body and a fine texture as the spent yeast cells break down and release mannoproteins into the wine. The result is golden in the glass, with ripe stone fruit, orchard fruit and fennel on the nose over a clear layer of oak. The palate is broad and creamy but kept in line by that mountain acidity, closing long with toasted almond and a savoury edge. Serve it at 10 to 12 degrees in a full white glass. It suits roast chicken, grilled white fish and hard nutty cheeses.