The stunning Arroyo del Tórtolas vineyard accounts for just 1.2 hectares of 80-year-old vines at 800m above sea level on pure granitic sand. One of three of Bernabeleva’s single vineyard wines, Arroyo del Tórtolas, is the steepest, highest, and the only one that faces north. Juan Bulnes purchased the lower section of the vineyard in 2007 and, three years later, completed the parcel.
The spongey granitic sands—known locally as episienita—are ploughed by horse under the control of Miguel Santiago, one of this area’s two remaining specialists in his field. Arroyo is one of the first of Bernabeleva’s vineyards to ripen, yet the shifting geology and the steepness of the site always result in two separate harvests from the top and bottom. The yields are naturally meagre, with each vine producing roughly two bottles of wine.
For this wine, the grapes are foot trodden and left to ferment naturally in upright wooden vats—fermentation can last up to two months in some years—with the percentage of stems dependent on the vintage. The yields are naturally meagre, with each vine producing roughly two bottles of wine. The aging takes place in 500 and 600-litre barrels for 12 months, after which the wine is bottled unfiltered.
We see this wine as the most ‘Gredos’ Grenache in Bernabeleva’s portfolio. Where the Viña Bonita, from south-facing vines, is a deeper and denser expression, Arroyo del Tórtolas gifts something pure, lacy and limpid, with haunting floral-infused aromas and a gracefully structured palate that flourishes with mineral intrigue.