94 pts Wine Advocate
Drink Date: 2024 - 2030
The 2020 Selección Personal could come from a different vineyard each year, but in the last few years, it has always been produced from a place called Marrate-El Bardallo in Labastida, one of Mendoza's favorite places for high-end wines. The uncrushed grapes fermented with indigenous yeasts from a pied de cuve in stainless steel, followed by malolactic in concrete and aging in French oak barrels for one year. It's a serious and elegant Tempranillo with a textured palate and very fine and chalky tannins. It has contained ripeness and nice balance. 2020 was a more austere and less aromatic vintage for this wine. 5,154 bottles were filled in May 2022.
Reviewed by: Luis Gutiérrez
Vigneron Abel Mendoza and his wife Maite Fernández described quite well what is happening with climate: "In recent years, we've experienced very irregular and changing weather, excess heat, episodes of drought and high temperatures, a very unequal distribution of rain and untimely incidents such as hail, frost or torrential rains. They are increasingly complicated vintages to which we will have to adapt since climate change is here to stay." Enough said.

They handcraft 80,000 bottles from their winery in San Vicente de la Sonsierra from the 25 hectares of vines, worked by hand without herbicides or pesticides, spread in 39 separate plots and averaging 38 years of age.

Published: Feb 29, 2024

• 100% Tempranillo
• Fruit is sorted, destemmed (but not crushed) and fermented in stainless steel tanks.
• Aged in concrete tanks for malolactic fermentation and then into French oak barriques for 12 - 13 months, depending on tasting
• 70 year-old vines from a terraced vineyard

Dark forest fruit, autumn leaves and orange peel in an admirably smooth scented wine. On the palate, ultra fine tannins and silky, dark red fruit impressions mingle with vanilla and light red berries. The mouthfeel is one of freshness and mellow structure. Beautifully balanced, the acidity produces a fresh and pleasant sensation on the finish.

Winemaking Notes

Abel and Maite have a plot of very old terraced vines next to the mountains, and the vineyard is roughly 70-ish years old. It was Abel’s selected plot in 1998, the first vintage of the wine. Nowadays, the wine is made from the best plot based on vintage variation. Usually it’s the same plot, but every now and then it varies. If the decision is to use another plot, the vineyards have to be at least 50 years old for this wine. They believe the “experience” of the vines makes for excellent quality fruit.

The fruit is sorted, destemmed (but not crushed) and fermented in stainless steel tanks. It then goes into concrete tanks for malolactic fermentation and then into 100% new French oak barrels for 12 - 13 months, depending on tasting.