Tentenublo | Rioja | Escondite del Ardacho, San José | 2022 | 750ml | bio

Description

Product description for Tentenublo Escondite del Ardacho, San José 2022 (bio)

Wine Information

The Basque region of Rioja is one of the most dynamic and exciting wine regions in Spain today. Winemaker Roberto Olivan of the Tentenublo winery is one of the most interesting minds on the local wine scene. His single-vineyard wine, San José, comes from a 0.3-hectare vineyard at an altitude of 560 meters at the foot of the Sierra Cantabria. Planted in 1952, it is a blend of 40% Tempranillo and 30% each of the white wine grapes Viura and Malvasia. Roberto Olivan harvests the various grape varieties in the vineyard simultaneously and ferments the grapes with the stems. The wine is aged in 500-liter wooden barrels in second use. This red wine belongs to the “Escondite del Ardacho” vineyard series, named after a native species of lizard disguised as a human on the wine labels.

Colour

Purple red

Nose

The San José 2022 offers a bouquet of cool minerality, fresh blue fruit, and stimulating herbal notes. The nose is clearly contoured with a focus on the expression of the primary aromas. This has depth and is very expressive.

Palate

On the palate, this red wine is impressively independent and full of character, which is certainly also due to the interesting mix of red and white grapes and the specific vineyard site in general. The wine has fine-grained tannins, is juicy, complex, and has a long finish. The fermentation with the stems contributes to the grip in the mouth and gives the San José a herbal spiciness and plenty of fresh energy. The wine has tension and flow; the 15.5% alcohol is not noticeable; the alcohol is perfectly integrated. Overall, despite the hot 2022 vintage, it is characterized by a lot of freshness and excellent balance.

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Keywords: Tentenublo Escondite del Ardacho, San José 2022 bio Rioja Spain

Wine Advocate

Score: 94

There is a new single-vineyard wine in 2022, the 2022 Escondite del Ardacho San José, which comes from a small plot in the village of Lanciego planted with 40% Tempranillo, 30% Viura and 30% Malvasía and also fruit trees on red sandstone soils. The full clusters fermented in open-top vats with indigenous yeasts, soft punch-downs and no racking. It matured in second-use, 500-liter French oak barrels for nine months. It’s ripe at 15.5% alcohol but keeps good freshness and balance. The nose is serious and harmonious, expressive and clean. It’s a warm and early zone at 600 meters that he has to harvest quite early but also because of the high percentage of white grapes. A great debut even in a very warm year. Only 995 bottles produced. It was bottled in August 2023.
Luis Gutiérrez

Producer website: https://tentenublo.com/