Pintia 2015

One of the very best wines from Toro. First marketed in 2001 by Pintia, part of the house Vega Sicilia. From the very first vintage, this wine scored high with almost all renowned wine critics, including Robert Parker. Pintia has limited availability because the wine is only made from grapes from old vines. Aged 18 months in French (75%) and American (25%) oak. The wine is slightly more powerful but also very aromatic, expressive and open, quite typical of a Toro. The Pintia has a deep red full, complex wine. Ripe black fruit, minerals, roasted tones, spices and a long, impressive finish. The Pintia bouquet is very Bordeaux-like with black instead of red fruit, fine minerality and notes of graphite and cedar. The taste is medium-bodied with plump, round tannins, a firm structure and great precision in the finish. This is what you call a "classic" Pintia, but anyway, this wine is only marketed when it is top.

94/100 Parker
94/100 Peñín
95/100 James Suckling

The soils of the plots of Pintia were formed on alluvial deposits from the Quaternary (this is the most recent geologic time period: 2.588 million years ago to today). Most of it is part of the high terraces around the Duero, with accumulations of sand and boulders on the top layer that allow the movement of water and clay particles mixed with small quartz particles to the bottom layer. This ensures a good water reserve, which in turn ensures good nutrition and water balance of the vines. The top layer is very rocky on some parts, which helps regulate the temperature. In addition, this contributes to an optimal phenolic ripeness of the grapes.

The climate is continental with weak oceanic influence and large temperature fluctuations: very hot and dry summers versus cold winters and a pluviometry of 350 to 400 mm with a total average temperature of only 12.5 º C. The perfect conditions to have healthy grapes with good ripening.

Vinification
The same strict selection criteria are followed as in Vega Sicilia. Given the typicity of Toro, only grapes with a potential alcohol of 14.5% are selected here (in Ribera that is 13%). The harvest is done manually. The second selection takes place in the bodega.
The grapes are placed in a cooling chamber at 5 º C for 12 hours. Then the cold maceration takes place in wooden barrels for 4 to 6 days. Then the fermentation begins with repeated remounts. The whole production gets its malolactic fermentation on barriques. Depending on the vintage, the élevage afterwards lasts between 12 to 15 months. The oak barrels are 70% French and 30% American. There is no second wine in this bodega, so if after the crianza it turns out that the wine does not meet the criteria, it will be removed and not used in the assembly for Pintia.

Fact: Pintia is a site where archeology is done. Pintia is the youngest member of the Vega Sicilia dynasty.