Fabulous Garnacha from the mountainous Gredos region. .
VITÍCOLA MENTRIDANA · MÉNTRIDA · Biodynamic
The Sierra de Gredos is an area of rugged granite peaks, forests, and hilltop towns southwest of Madrid. The combination of high altitude (600-1,000 metres), free draining granitic soils, and a long growing season gives it a unique micro-climate. Vines cling to
scree-slopes like mountain goats, many of these sites were abandoned decades ago, but a new generation of growers is rediscovering them. Dani Landi was one of the pioneers working with the old vines here, making elegant, mineral wines that are worlds away from the high-octane reds which people expect from Spanish Garnacha. Curro Barreño, one half of brilliant Ribeira Sacra project Fedellos, also grew up in this area. He’s a childhood friend of Dani, sharing many bottles together and winemaking influences. Since 2021 Curro has taken over responsibility for Dani’s vineyards in Méntrida and is making wines under the Vitícola Mentridana label. Curro’s building on Dani’s meticulous foundations, interpreting the vineyards, and working with a light touch in the winery. He uses a proportion of whole bunch, minimal extraction, and large old oak barrels. T
Uvas de la Ira (The Grapes of Wrath) still comes from 70-year-old vines in El Real de San Vicente.
The 2022 Las Uvas de la Ira, produced and sold before by Dani Landi, is now a wine from Vitícola Mentridana under the direction of Curro Bareño, who takes over in this cool vintage. It was produced in the same way, from six vineyards in the village El Real De San Vicente, fermented separately and, depending on the vineyards, with shorter or longer macerations (longer in the vineyard they called El Fin del Mundo). Vinification has been like this since 2017, with contained extraction from the earlier-ripening vineyards and getting more grip from the slow-ripening places that have the rock and give the grip. It has contained ripeness and very good balance and expression, with fruit and juicy, but it also has chalky grip.
