Taste: Vivid ruby color. Lively red and dark berry aromas show good clarity and a touch of candied flowers. The texture is smooth and seamless, offering juicy black raspberry and cherry flavors, given spine by a gentle mineral nuance. The finish is fruity and broad, with a touch of white pepper adding lift and cut.
Pairing: Pairs well with just about any food: pizza, panini sandwiches, pulled pork sliders, fajitas, cheese quesadillas, pastrami, and corned beef sandwiches. This is an excellent wine to sip without food, as well. If you don't have any aged manchego or aged Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese handy, pour some in your glass and enjoy!
About. If you love wines of tension that exhibit purity and finesse, you will find Zestos old Vine Garnacha to be your new love. Zestos shows the complexity of a wine three times its price. In the words of Robert M. Parker Jr., Zestos is “a staggering value” and “an unbelievable wine for the price.”
Zestos old vine is produced from Garnacha vines that were planted as far back as 1950 in the high elevation vineyards of San Martin Valdeiglesias, which is northwest of Madrid. Today San Martin produces some of the most floral and mineral-driven Garnachas in all of Spain. The older the vines, the better the wine. Old vines do not over produce. As a result, the vines yield fully ripened grapes. Perfectly ripened grapes make wine that improves with time. Zestos means "basket" in Spanish. Not too many years ago, baskets like the ones depicted on the label were used to transport grapes from the vineyard to the wineries. Madrid has recently become the center of one of the most interesting and innovative wine regions on the Iberian Peninsula. The outskirts of this storied royal city are filled with old Garnacha vines situated in high-elevation vineyards that have been planted in ideal soils. Madrid is a sort of “great unknown” that is now just freshly discovered. Many people are unaware that Madrid makes wine, and because Vinos de Madrid is somewhat under the radar, it is a great source of incredible value today.
This Old Vine Garnacha is vinified in stainless steel and cement tanks of 10,000-liter capacity. Garnacha grapes in San Martin are generally harvested during mid-October. Pre-fermentation maceration and fermentation takes 5 days, followed by a longer post maceration period of 10 days. The wine is aged in cement and stainless steel tanks to emphasize the purity of flavor and the youthful, fresh character of the Garnacha grape.
