El Escolladero 2020

The 2020s El Escolladero comes from the 0.95 hectare Paraje El Meadero vineyard in Ábalos. The vineyard, characterised by clay and limestone, was planted in 1950 at 660 metres with 85 % Tempranillo and 15 % Graciano. Arturo and Kike de Miguel Blanco planted the vineyard about ten years ago at an altitude of 720 metres. For the El Escolladero de-stemmed grapes were used, which were fermented spontaneously. The wine then matured in tonneaux for a year and was bottled unfiltered. Among Artuke's site wines, it is considered a grand cru led. There are 1,424 bottles.

Ruby red with light purple

The 2020s El Escolladero is a fascinatingly beautiful, balanced wine right from the start. The Rioja appears clear and pure with its beguilingly fresh and at the same time elegant dark fruit of blackberries, blueberries and cherries, elderberries and violets with mint, chervil and a little thyme, to which is added a fine wood and a cool stony impression.

On the palate, it becomes even clearer to what extent the El Escolladero as grand cru from the Premiers Crus stands out. The cuvée seems incredibly polished, silky, fine, deep and intense, but also delicate and dancing with the deep minerality from the old vines and the clear acidity that comes from the high altitude. Again, there is the full splendour of dark fruit that is ripe as well as juicy and yet has a slight bite. The tannin is polished, as it were, the texture almost sublime and noble, the finish long and slightly salty. A great Rioja.