Alto Moncayo Veraton

Every time we taste a new wine from Jorge Ordóñez we have the same reaction: we take our hats off to him. This man knows how to pick the right vineyards and surround himself with good professionals so as to offer the widest possible range of consumers some delightful wines. They will more or less please just about everybody, because he does offer style, but quality and elegance are irrefutable factors in all the wines bearing his name.

This Veratón, for example, from Alto Moncayo, a winery which boasts the famous Australian oenologist Chris Ringland, is a totally pure mountain Garnacha, made using grapes from old vineyards, very impressive; and so too are its name, its label and the choice of bottle. A lovely, lovely wine: dense, lively, rich and refined.

Once in the glass, Veratón exhibits thick tears and a vivacious, bright colour, so we are expecting a real beauty. Forget the idea that Garnacha has no colour! On the nose it is decidedly rich with restrained power; there is no doubting its potential and vigour, yet all the aromas come through in a perfectly balanced and smooth way, in harmony: creamy ageing notes showing good integration, juicy fruit aromas of red and black fruits, fresh and ripe fruit, with forest berry notes, spicy and balsamic hints too, and smoky touches… It is a complex and powerful wine, ready to delight us on the nose but ending up by enchanting us on the palate: fresh, sinewy, meaty, very intense and flavoursome, with suggestions of liqueur and earthy notes, on a mineral background. Its elegance is most apparent and the tannins come over as polished, auguring a long life ahead for this wine. The aftertaste continues the flavour of red and black fruit and a rich-sweet feel, not overly sweet but definitely rich, appealing, elegant and seductive. What about another one? Just remember when you finish the bottle: this tasty Garnacha contains 15.5% alcohol!