From: Jumilla, Spain
Varietal: Monastrell

Taste: Complex nose of ripe plums, rich red fruit, and licorice and fig characters. The wine is generous, rich, and spicy on the palate – weighty with good, concentrated red and black fruit, fine tannins, and fresh acidity on the finish. The vines are planted on limestone soils without irrigation and with very poor yields. Rainfall does not exceed 300 mm annually, and it helps to obtain top-quality grapes without adding any pesticides. Organic.

Pairing: Pair with coq au vin or grilled pork, casseroles, tamales, corn-based dishes, BBQ, roasted meats and vegetables, and an assortment of weeknight favorites. Tacos, burgers, gyro, and kebabs are our neighborhood highlights, but this rich red is so smooth that it’ll even pair with grilled salmon and vegetarian dishes, such as eggplant or farro as the base.

About this wine. Bodegas Juan Gil belongs to the Grupo Juan Gil Bodegas Familiares, who own the Ateca winery and make Honoro Vera. Their Monastrell vines come exclusively from organically farmed vineyards planted on limestone soils with a low yield. They have a continental climate with Mediterranean influences—a dry, arid climate with little rainfall. Winters are cold, reaching temperatures below 0, in contrast to the hot summers, with temperatures reaching 40 degrees. The poor yield gives the grape a high quality.

Fermentation occurs for 15 days in stainless steel tanks at a maximum temperature of 25 ° C. Malolactic fermentation occurs in tanks, where it remains refrigerated until bottling.