Bodegas Borsao Tres Picos Garnacha Campo de Borja 2020 (750ml)

 

Rated 92 Points by James Suckling

 

A fruity and floral garnacha with bright cherries, ripe strawberries, slate, potpourri and roasted spices.  Intense and medium-bodied with velvety tannins that round the juicy berries and flowers on the palate.  There’s a coffee-candy note in the finish that will need another year to integrate better.  Yet, it’s very drinkable even now.

 

Rated 90 Points & Smart Buy by Wine Spectator

 

A bold but balanced red, leading with aromatic tar and black licorice notes that are well-meshed with raspberry ganache, mocha, dried thyme, fresh orange peel acidity and supple tannins.  (Smart Buy)

 

Rated 90 Points & Best Buy by Wine Enthusiast

 

A nose of slightly brambly fruits of the wood and cherry pipe tobacco paves the way for flavors of blackberry pie, cherry preserves, cocoa butter, anise and a hint of orange zest.  Glossy tannins and a note of freshly ground black pepper linger gently on the palate.

 

Bodegas Borsao Tres Picos Garnacha

 

Campo de Borja 2020

 

“My favorite value winery not only in Spain, but in the world, is Bodegas Borsao”

Robert Parker August 31, 2016

 

Borsao Tres Picos is the flagship of the winery.  The best Garnacha of the Campo de Borja area.  It was the first "100% Garnacha" wine produced in Spain back in 2000.  Grapes are hand picked in 300 kg boxes. 

 

At the winery, a manual cluster selection is sorted.  A cold maceration during 1-2 days in steel tank with controlled temperatures 22-30ºC.  The wine is aged for 5 to 6 months in new bordelaise barrels of French oak.

 

The grapes for this exceptional wine were harvested from old vine Garnacha vineyards that cling to rugged terrain on the slopes of the famous Moncayo Mountain.  Low yields of less than two tons per acre produce a rich deeply colored and aromatic wine with concentrated flavors of blackberries, strawberries and nuances of leather, vanilla and plums.

 

Tasting Notes

 

Very intense cherry red colour with tones of purple.  Presents in the nose a great concentration of aromas of ripe red fruit with floral nuances.  In the mouth, it is a well-structured, rich wine that evokes tastes of blackberry, plum and tones of leather and vanilla, with a soft and silky tannin.

 

Alcohol:  15%

 

Food Pairing

 

Barbecue, vegetables, beef and pork.  Rice and pasta based dishes.  Goes well with cheese and hearty meals, such as Chili, Shepard's Pie, and Lasagna.

 

Vineyard & Production Information

 

Vineyard Name:  Tabuenca, Borja, Pozuelo

 

Soil Composition:  Iron-rich, Clay, Sand, Gravel, and Stony

 

Elevation:  1,200-2,400 feet

 

Exposure:  Northern / Southern

 

Harvest Time:  October

 

First vintage of this wine:  2000

 

Bottles produced of this wine:  150,000

 

Average Vine Age:  18

 

Winemaking & Aging

 

Varietal Composition:  100% Garnacha

 

Length of alcoholic fermentation:  10-12 days

 

Fermentation Temperature:  73-82 °F

 

Maceration Technique:  Cold Soak Maceration

 

Type of aging container:  Barrels

 

Size of aging container:  225L

 

Age of aging container:  New

 

Type of oak:  French

 

Length of aging before bottling:  5-6 Months

 

 

Bodegas Borsao

 

Land Work Creativity

 

This is our Life

 

So is our wine

 

Estate Owned by:  Bodegas Borsao SA

 

Winemaker:  Jose Luis Chueca

 

Total acreage under vine:  5584

 

Estate Founded:  2001

 

Winery Production:  150,000 Bottles

 

Region:  DO Campo de Borja

 

Country:  Spain

 

A Mythical Brand

 

The first written records about winemaking in our region date back to 1203 and were founded in the Monastery of Veruela.  The monks had an essential role in the development of vinegrowing and winemaking in the region.

 

In the 19th century, private wineries in the foothills surrounding Veruela began to emerge and in the 1950´s economic difficulties pushed small producers to join their forces and six co-operatives emerge, which nowadays comprise most of the D.O.

 

Garnacha

 

Borsao is the benchmark for premium Spanish Garnacha.  We have been one of the greatest preservers of this variety.  We believe that it is specially suited to the region and that we must continue working on improving the wines it produces.

 

Garnacha is living a huge revival world-wide thanks to its fruit-driven character, soft tannins and pleasant mouthfeel, that make it perfect to match a great variety of meals.

 

Garnacha originated in Aragón, where Borja is located and it owes its development throughout Europe to the strength of the Kingdom of Aragón, whose expansion made Garnacha be well established in the Rhône Valley in the 19th century, Italy and Sardinia.

 

Garnacha is the most planted red variety of the world.  Other names for Garnacha; Alicante, Aragonés, Cannonau, Garnaccho Negro, Garnacha Negra, Garnacha Roja, Garnacha Tinta, Grenache, Tintilla, Toledana,  Uva di Spagna.

 

During the 80s and 90s, it was extensively uprooted in Spain.  However, it has been very well preserved in Aragón, where they are pioneers in single varietal garnacha and have contributed to its popularity among consumers.

 

Viticulture

 

The Hillsides of the Moncayo shelter the vineyards located between 350 and 800 metres of altitude, regulating cold, heat and moderating the effects of the North-west Cierzo, which is responsible for the characteristic wild fruit aromas (Silvestres).

 

Focus on “Garnacha”: We believe in the use of this indigenous variety, originated in our region.  64% of the total surface of our vineyards is planted with it.  All the wines in our range are based in Garnacha, some of them 100% and some others with just a proportion to add fruit and a sense of place.

 

All 1,500 hectares in our property are planted with an indigenous clon of Garnacha, 900 hectares correspond to “Garnacha de Monte”, i.e. Garnacha over 35 years of age, growing on hillsides, bush-trained and not irrigated.

 

The Moncayo, with its soft undulations, provides optimum conditions for growing grapes, especially Garnacha that by tradicion respresents 70% of the total production.

 

New varieties such as Syrah, Tempranillo, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon have adapted to this hard, dry and stony land.  The hillsides and undulations of the Moncayo protect the different vineyards, 2,260 hectares, situated at altitudes between 400 and 700 m, regulating the cold, the heat and the typical Cierzo from the North that gives the grape its characteristic wild aroma.

 

Climate

 

Generally speaking, the region has a solid continental climate, with a winter Atlantic influence –whose most important characteristic is the North-West “Cierzo” wind- and a summer Mediterranean influence.  Low rainfall, at an average of 350 – 450 mm.

 

Extreme temperatures and very sharp day and seasonal thermal contrasts help to retain acids and fix colour and tannin.

 

Soils & Area Reliefs

 

The relief corresponds to a succession of high plateaus, 350-800 metres-high, with a gentle topography.  The western side is rougher due to the proximity of the Moncayo Massif, providing character to the wines.  Regarding the soils, the dominant ones are red clayed, chalky and stony, with good drainage and medium levels of organic matter.  The area offers very different soils:

 

• Tabuenca, red clay mixed with red-slates at an altitude of 750 m.
• Borja very sandy soils with rolling stones at an altitude of 450 m
• Pozuelo, limy soils mixed with gravels at an altitude of 350 m.

 

Winemaking

 

Our winemaking aims at preserving all the characteristics of the grapes coming from our vineyards.  We work to preserve the intense fruit characters, body and roundness of Garnacha at all price points and quality levels:

 

• Harvest is carried out manually in our key vineyards, the ones from which we will elaborate de Selección Range.
• Fruit is harvested and transported in 20-kg cases for the Selección wines range.
• Our winery uses a significant 1 million frigories cooling capacity to preserve the characteristics of the fruit.
• Oak is used moderately to tame and add complexity to the wines, rather than impose its presence on the wines. We adapt the use of oak to the final style of the wine: different origins, both new and used wood and different sizes help us round up the expression of our wines.

 

 

Rated 90 Points & Smart Buy by Wine Spectator

 

A bold but balanced red, leading with aromatic tar and black licorice notes that are well-meshed with raspberry ganache, mocha, dried thyme, fresh orange peel acidity and supple tannins.  (Smart Buy)

 

 

 

Rated 90 Points & Best Buy by Wine Enthusiast

 

A nose of slightly brambly fruits of the wood and cherry pipe tobacco paves the way for flavors of blackberry pie, cherry preserves, cocoa butter, anise and a hint of orange zest.  Glossy tannins and a note of freshly ground black pepper linger gently on the palate.