’La Otea’ - Verdejo (22)

Verdejo | 'La Otea' | 3 percelen | stokken van 100-150 jaar oud | zanderig terroir in Villanueva de Duero en Hornillos de Eresma | whole bunch press | 11 maanden vergisting en rijping op eikenhouten vaten van 600 liter | daarna nog 11 maanden in staaltank |  spanning | levendig | expressief | verfijnder in 2020 | Jura style | notig | strakke zuren | karafferen

Isaac Cantalapiedra

De familie Cantalapiedra bezit ongeveer 20 hectare in het gebied la Seca, op 750 meter hoogte en ten hoogte van Madrid. Manuel maakt deel uit van de huidige generatie en heeft een duidelijke visie; rijpere stijl Verdejo van biologische druiven. Daarnaast hebben ze drie single vineyards genaamd: 'Chivitero', 'Los Picones' en 'La Otea' en sinds kort is hij ook begonnen met een project in Toro waar hij met de inheemse druif Tinto de Toro een hele fraaie rode wijn maakt. Inmiddels is de hele serie in ons assortiment en bijna niet meer weg te denken in de topgastronomie.

Review

The 2021 La Otea was produced from ungrafted vines on sandy soils, different plots in different villages, some of them over 100 years of age. The clusters were pressed and the juice put to ferment with indigenous yeasts in used French oak barrels for some 25 days. The wine matured for 11 months in those barrels followed by another 11 months in stainless steel. It has a nuanced nose, with detail and complexity, with notes of yellow flowers, pollen, wet stones and white pepper. The palate is even better, tasty and lively, with a chalky texture, light tannins and a tasty, almost salty finish and the bitter twist from the variety. 2,000 bottles produced. It was bottled in August 2023. 94+/100 Luis Gutiérrez

Cantalapiedra Viticultores is a family winery that was created in the village of La Seca in Rueda in 2014 in which two generations are working already. The winemaker is the young Manuel Cantalapiedra, who has also started a personal project. Most of their vines are in their village, 21 hectares planted with Verdejo. They have also bought some old, ungrafted vines, 0.4 hectares of 80-year-old vines in Alcazarén, 1.5 hectares of vines in Hornillos de Eresma and one hectare in Matapozuelos and 2.6 hectares on Toro. They have also rented old Garnacha in Villafranca del Duero and in Palacios Rubios, close to Arévalo, and they also work a centenary plot of Garnacha. So, they work a total of 30 hectares. Production is around 140,000 bottles. All of the wines are sold without appellation of origin, as Vino Varietal, like table wine where you can use vintage and variety.

2021 was a cooler year, but they don't want to talk about cold years anymore, so let's say a "normal" year of wines with more precision and freshness. 2022 was the warmest year they remember since they started in 2014. But the result is much better than expected; they got moderate alcohol because the plants got blocked, and they have the lowest alcohol in their wines ever. All of the wines are certified organic, all of the whites go through full malolactic, they use as little sulfur as possible, and none of the wines are filtered.