Depaula - Monastrell

Monastrell | DO Jumilla | 50+ jaar oude bush vines | wijngaard van 4 ha | stenig terroir | 6 maanden rijping op eikenhout | juicy | explosief | drop | wilde kruiden | aards | laurier | zachte tannine | smooth 

J.A.Ponce

Juan Antonio begint in 2003 een andere koers te varen. In plaats van zijn druiven te verkopen, heeft hij voor ogen om een grootse wijn van de Bobal te maken. De wijngaarden zijn gelegen rondom de stad Cuenca, tussen Madrid en Valencia in. Na zijn natuurlijke vergisting en geen toevoegingen van zwavel krijg je een zeer bijzondere wijn. Een dieprode kleur, sappig en kruidig met een enorme diepgang. Geknipt voor voor de Nederlandse gastronomie!

Review

Their varietal Monastrell 2019 Depaula is now produced with 100% grapes from one single vineyard they own in Manchuela, as in the past it was sourced from different places, initially Jumilla. It was not produced in 2018, as they searched for an appropriate vineyard. They found a four-hectare plot planted 30 years ago in the zone of Mahora in Albacete where there is more influence from Jumilla/Almansa than in Cuenca where Bobal reigns. So, this 2019 is an estate wine. They fermented the full clusters with indigenous yeasts in 4,500-liter oak casks and matured the wine in a 15,000-liter oak vat for seven months. It has a different fruit profile from the majority of Bobal reds, a little less expressive and more serious. It's medium-bodied and has bright acidity and very fine tannins. Monastrell ripens late, and it rained before they could harvest the grapes, so perhaps the wine is a little lighter but with the Monastrell character, some tomato vine and bright fruit. 20,000 bottles produced. It was bottled in April 2020.

To celebrate the 15th anniversary of the winery, the Ponce family has released from the excellent 2018 vintage a new top of the range that carries their surname. The family owns 50 hectares in the villages of Iniesta, Villanueva de la Jara, Villamalea and Mahora, from which they produce 120,000 bottles of some of the best wines from Manchuela. 2018 is an exceptional vintage, which Juan Antonio Ponce compares with 2008, 2010 or 2013, with lower alcohol and more elegant wines. 2019 is a very good year, very Mediterranean, with a warm summer and a cold spell during the harvest that perhaps produced more immediate wines than 2018, a little in the style of 2016 or 2017. Luis Gutierrez 93/100