THE WINE
An awesome grape: Monastrell
D.O. Yecla Viticulture at the limit
Winemaking : Under the hood
Tasting notes
Monastrell seems to have found its natural habitat in Yecla.
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LA MAQUINA MONASTRELL YECLA SPAIN
Monastrell is probably not the winemaker’s best friend, but a rare delicatessen for a wine gourmet.
AN AWESOME GRAPE: MONASTRELL
It is a Spanish grape variety, also named Mouvèdre (FR) or Mataro (US), planted mainly in the Murcia Region and Northern Alicante. A difficult grape variety to grow, requesting a very specific climate: warm, very dry , extremly sunny , and low yields. Without those conditions it will not express all it's complexity.
Monastrell seems to have found its natural habitat in Yecla.
A delicate grape to vinify where tannins can turn from delicious sweetness to bitterness in a couple of pumping over. And finally a grape that has a love and hate relationship with the air, making ageing in barrels a challenging process.
CONCLUSION: Not the winemaker’s best friend, but a rare delicatessen for a wine gourmet.
EXTRA DATA :
3rd most planted red grape variety in Spain
Very late ripening
Roots have naturally good resistance to phylloxera
Very well adapted to dry climates and basic soils
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One of the survivors of the arid climate of Yecla. |
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YECLA D.O. :VITICULTURE AT THE LIMIT
D.O. Yecla is one of the 3 D.O. of the region of Murcia, the other two are Jumilla and Bullas. It is located in the south east of Spain at just 45 km from the Mediterranean sea.
The native grape variety is Monastrell which is today the most planted grape variety in the D.O. More recently other grape varieties have been introduced, like Syrah, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Tempranillo and Petit Verdot.
Even if Yecla is close to Mediterranean coast it is far to be a strict Mediterranean climate mainly due to the altitude. Vineyards are indeed planted between 500 and 850m of Altitude.
This altitude result in a climate mainly continental mixed with Mediterranean influences. Winters are cold, summers are hot and dry, and Mediterranean rainfalls appear on beginning of September helping the Monastrell to achieve its full ripeness. This make a perfect spot for growing Monastrell.
Yecla is definitely the place to be . . . If you’re a Monastrell !!
KEY DATAS :
AVERAGE YIELD : 30 hl/ha !!
AVERAGE YEARLY RAINFALL : 300 mm/m2
ALTITUDE : 500 to 800 mts
SUNNY DAYS : + 300 /year
AREA : 6500 ha
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I knew that by delighting some I’ll shock others. And I like it! |
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WINEMAKING : UNDER THE HOOD
Harvest is strictly made by hand, were the yield of the Monastrell is around 8hl/ha !!
As soon as the grapes are in the vat, it is bleeded at 40 to 50%, to give an extra concentration!! A cold maceration take place for 48 hours. It is followed by 14 days controlled temperature fermentation with native yeast. The wine will then make it's malolactic in brand new french oak barrels, 500 liters for Monastrell and 225 liters for Syrah and Garnacha.
After 21 to 22 months of ageing in barrels the wine will be lightly filtered and bottled.
KEY DATA :
HARVEST : Manual
YIELD : 8 hl/ha
FERMENTATION : 48H cold maceration + 14 days fermentation
AGEING : +21 months in 500lts French Barrel
TOTAL PRODUCTION : 3500 bottles
When you’ll taste” La Maquina” expect to be thrilled, . . . and may be to like it.
TASTING NOTES:
ANALISIS :
Alc : 15,1 % vol.
T.A : 5,6 gr/l
pH : 3,6
V.A : 0,65 gr/l
R.S : 3 gr/l
