Cien Y Pico was created by four winemakers (Australian Zar Brooks, his Bulgarian wife Elena Golakova Brooks, Spaniard Luis Jimenez Garcia and Italian Nicola Tucci), when they came across, and were amazed that people were grubbing up, old Garnacha Tintorera vines in Manchuela in south-eastern Spain. The name means “hundred and something” and refers to the age of the ancient vines from which the wines are made. The old, low-yielding, bush-trained vines give vibrant colour, fruit concentration and flavour to the wines, while the excellence of the winemaking ensures that the natural power of the vines, traditionally used to produce blending wines, is sculpted into something nicely rounded, balanced and ideal for drinking now.

Cien Y Pico’s four vineyards are all located on the Meseta (or “plateau”) of Castilla-La Mancha. With only 300 millimetres of rain per year, the plateau is extremely dry, though the deep-rooted, gnarled old vines thrive in the low-vigour, limestone-rich soils. The mountains surrounding the Meseta offer protection from the icy winters while, in summer, the intense sun at this altitude of nearly 1,000 metres warms and ripens the grapes to perfection.

Vineyards

This vineyard is located in Mahora, a tiny village next to Albacete, between Madrid and Alicante on the coast. It is located on a wide, dry plateau 1000 metres above sea level, surrounded by mountains that offer protection from the icy cold winters. The soil here is composed of limestone rich, red, sandy Miocene era sedimentary clay and the yield is 3.3 tonnes per hectare.

Vinification

The ancient, free standing bush vines were grown on their own roots with just 300mm of rain a year, yielding tiny but intense crops of deeply coloured Garnacha Tintorera. ‘Doble Pasta’ is a method of winemaking where crushed grapes were fermented over additional grape skins to create a dark, concentrated wine. They were then vinified traditionally with some new French oak.

Tasting Notes

Deep purple in colour with violet tints, this wine has intense aromas of blueberries, damsons and cherries. The palate is intense and flavourful, supported by tannins that are firm but go almost unnoticed given their ripeness and integration. The powerful fruit character reverberates on the finish.

Great with sausage casserole, spicy bean burgers and BBQ.