El Escoces Volante 'Valdelabarga' Parcelas Singulares 2020

98 POINTS: La Vanguardia Wine Guide
96 POINTS: Tim Atkin MW
96 POINTS: James Suckling
96 POINTS: ABC Guia de Vinos

Garnacha Tinta 85%, Other varieties 15% (Provechon, Macabeo)

"Valdelabarga is a glacial plain composed of boulders and cantos situated between la Sierra de Armantes and Virgen de la Sierra in the heart of the Sistema Ibérico in the municipality of Torralba de Ribota at 680m. According to local folklore, the parcel changed hands for the price of a bull– Venta del Bravo. The parcel dates from 1941 based on government records, but its varietal mix of Garnacha Fina (approximately 85%) with a sprinkling of Provechon (Bobal), Macabeo and other minority varieties suggests an earlier planting date just after phylloxera ravaged Europe in the 1860s. It is an exception ‘lieu-dit’ with free draining soils with a capacity to always ripen and produce a Garnacha blend with ripe fruit and elegance. The grapes were harvested into 20kg stored between 0 and 1 degrees in a cool room with controlled humidity. Fermented in an open top fermenter with 15% of whole bunches included in a layer cake fashion. Gentle punching down was applied once or twice a day only during a long, slow, soft fermentation after the grapes warm up from their cold soak. Afterwards, we carried out a long maceration, malolactic fermentation took place on skins . After pressing the wine remained in 5 x 500 litre Stockinger barrels for 12 months before bottling with minimal fining and filtration. Intense black cherry fruit mixes with subtle notes of nutmeg and allspice and an underlying creaminess from the Stockinger barrels. The wine shows perfect ripeness on the palate with abundant but fine tannins. Perfectly judged balance between complexity and charm. Very fine, pure and precise."
- Norrel Robertson MW

ABV: 14%