Wine of the Month, January 2023
deAlto 'Aurkitu' Garnacha
Vinas Viejas 2019
Navarra
Spain
£12.00 + 100 bonus loyalty points
To kick off 2023's Wines of the Month we're venturing to the Spanish foothills of the Pyrenees and the province of Navarre. These days though outshone by Rioja, the region next door, it's got a long wine-producing heritage dating back to when it was a stop-off and refreshment point for pilgrims en route to Santiago de Compostela. The countryside here is not unlike Rioja either, just a bit more remote and off the tourist trail.
Garnacha, not Tempranillo, is the main red variety in these parts though so for this month's selection we're running with a delicious, bright and fruity example of this sometimes under-rated grape. The vineyards are in the cooler, higher altitude reaches of the region and make for an elegant wine that's effortlessly pleasurable quaffing.
Some think of Navarra as Rioja's country cousin but that's really doing the area a bit of a dis-service. While many of the vineyards cluster around the river Ebro it's from the higher altitude, hence cooler, Baja Montaña sub-region closer to the Pyrenees where the more interesting wines, like this one, are grown. The grapes here take longer to ripen than lower down the valley which gives them a delicious freshness and vitality.
While the energetic fruitiness is the hallmark there is an underlying warm spiciness to go with it which comes from the judicious use of oak in maturation. And in some respects it hints stylistically towards a decent Burgundy. And given that the producer, Bodegas deAlto, works in tandem with the respected Giles Cooke MW, the quality here doesn't really come as much of a surprise.
To underline its quality it even caught the attention of the discerning wine critics at Decanter magazine and jancisrobinson.com, fairly unusual for wine as humble as this, who described in very complimentary terms. We have to say we certainly agree with them which is why we decided to highlight as one of our Wines of the Month.
Starting on Friday 30th December and throughout January 2023 it's available at £12.00 per bottle singly, or as part of a Mixed Six and for every bottle purchased you'll earn a bonus 100 loyalty points as well (that's worth £1.00 on redemption)
Check out the details here
