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VITICULTURE&WINEMAKING
Careful Viticulture
In2020,FincaSandovalchangedthetrainingandpruningsystemstoencouragegreaterdevelopmentofthecanopy.This promoted shading of the bunches, which yields larger, more concentrated fruit and wines of more fluidity, freshness and elegance.
Aging In Clay
Recovering local winemaking practices for their Fundamentalista bottling, Finca Sandoval is experimenting with clay amphora known as las tinajas – the traditional aging vessels of Manchuela. The team feels wine aged in the amphora best expresses the estate’s terroir and their work in the vineyard. The clay’s porosity allows the winemakers to perform controlledmicro-oxygenationwhilepreservingintensityoffruitandthefreshnessofthewine.
Art Of Blending
Finca Sandoval maintains the European tradition of blended wines, even when one variety dominates. For instance, their Finca Sandoval bottling is primarily from low-yield, old-vine Syrah, but it is blended with native grape varieties like Monastrell,GarnachaandBobaltoaddcomplexityandlocalcharacter.
Moravia Agria is an heirloom grape native to Manchuela, the only DO that permits its use in wine. It is a sensitive variety with very thin skin that produces relatively low alcohol content (approx. 12.5%) and notable acidity. Finca Sandoval uses Moravia Agria in blends to add freshness and acidity.
Howistheterroirreflectedinthe winesofFincaSandoval?
Finca Sandoval is driven by the desire to make wine that reflects the specific terroir of their various plots. For example, La Fundamentalista is a field blend sourced from a high elevation plot where old-vine Bobal is coplanted with Moravia, Marisancho and Tortosina. The fruit is co-fermented, allowing the vineyard character to shape the wine. The resulting winesshowgreatverticality,acidityandfreshness.
Salia, on the other hand, is composed of Syrah, Bobal and Touriga Nacional from separate plots. They are vinified separately to preserve the identity of their growing site. The predominantly clay soils yield wines that are round on the palate with more volumeandintensefruit.
FINCASANDOVAL PORTFOLIO:
Fundamentalista, Salia, Finca Sandoval, Signo Bobal, La Rosa, Aurora
SingularitiesoftheWinery
FincaSandovalhasworkedtoputManchuelabackon the viticultural map, recovering the best of the area’s vines and winemaking traditions. Their combination of new and old technology is uncovering layers of expressionoftheirfruitandterroir.
WhyisFincaSandovalaGrandes PagosdeEspañawinery?
Finca Sandoval is a founding member of GPE. Victor de la Serna has long been a champion of single-estate wines that display characteristics of a particular soil type, orientation, microclimate or cultivar – the definition of pago wines. Like fellow members, they produce wines in harmony with the soil,climateandnatureofeachpago.
FincaSandoval
Varieties
80% Syrah, 15% Bobal, 5% Moravia Agria
Vinification
Vinified with 40% whole cluster fruit, spontaneous fermentation with natived yeast; aged 18 months in large foudres
GoodtoKnow
Blend from the best parcels of the Casablanca vineyard
Varieties
60% Syrah, 25% Bobal, 20% Touriga Nacional, 5% Garnacha
Vinification
Vinified with 40% whole cluster fruit, spontaneous fermentation with native yeast; aged 10 months in 300 L French oak barrels
GoodtoKnow
All fruit comes from the same municipality
Mustiguillo
is a family winery located in the Valencian highlands on the El Terrerazo estate Here, vines grow in a unique microclimate equally influenced by the nearby mountains and Mediterranean Sea, making Mustiguillo unlike any other estate in Southern Spain. Focused on the recovery and celebration of native varieties such as Bobal and Merseguera, the estate is proudly regionally-focused and terroir-driven. From thorough soil studies to careful organic viticulture and explorations in biodynamic farming, the winery is at the forefront of new and exciting experiments in Spanish wine.
KEYFACTS
CLIMATE: Continentalclimatewith Mediterraneaninfluence;averagetemperature 56°F(14°C),precipitation 17in.(438mm)
ELEVATION:ElTerrerazo2,690ft(820m); FincaCalvestra3,018ft(920m)
SOILS: ElTerrerazo:calcareoussoilsof dolomiticorigin,sandy-loamtexture; FincaCalvestra:limestone, silty-sandytexture ofalluvialorigin,smallplotwithmarls
CLASS: DOPTerrerazo
History
Mustiguillo was founded on estate built in the 19th century and acquired by the Sarrión family in 1970. Yet, it wasn’t until Toni Sarrión left his career in business administration to dedicate himself to winemaking that Mustiguillo as we know it today took shape. Mustiguillo is the pioneer and current benchmark for quality Bobal. In 2004, Quincha Corral 2001 was the first 100% Bobal wine rated by Robert Parker (95 points), while Decanter recognized Finca Terrerazo in 2014 as the best Spanish wine under 25£. In 2019, Mustiguillo celebrated the centenary of Terrerazo 1919, the first vintage produced at the estate and documented at the time by famed enologist and agricultural engineer Rafael Janini.
VINE: 264acres(107ha)across47plots
KEYVARIETALS:Bobal,Merseguera
ECO: EU-certifiedorganic;eliminationof allplasticsinwarehouseandpackaging
INNOVATE: Conductingsoilanalysis, experimentingwithbiodynamicsand sustainablepracticeslikeusingsheepand theirowncomposttofertilizevineyards
Mustiguillo practices 100% organic viticulture,withemphasisonconservingthe flora and fauna of the environment. To encourage soil health, they use natural compost of manure with pulverized pruned leaves and canes, as well as soil treatments such as tillage in alternate rows and vegetable cover crops. The cover crops are mixed (spontaneously mixed with fescue seeds, bromus and vetch) and defined according to the plot, variety, type of wine and winter rainfall. This helps encourages thevinestocompeteforresources.
