Garnacha 'Microcosmico'

Score

90

Score

92+

Score

92

Score

92

"The 2020 Garnacha Microcósmico from Fernando Mora's Bodegas Frontonio comes in at 13.5 percent octane in this vintage. As I have noted in the past, this wine is crafted from organically-farmed, steep, high elevation, old bush vines, planted on stony soils of slate and sand. The exposition for the vines is due north, which helps to slow ripening. The wine offers up a classic garnacha bouquet of raspberries, garrigue, smoked meats, stony soil tones, a touch of fruitcake and a topnote of bonfire. On the palate the wine is bright, full-bodied and fairly transparent in personality, with good depth at the core, fine soil signature and a long, complex, ripely tannic and well balanced finish. Good juice. 2034-2060."

Score

93

"The austere red 2022 Microc¢smico Garnacha has moderate ripeness and alcohol (13.5%) and very good freshness and acidity (pH 3.32 and close to six grams of tartaric acid per liter). It was cropped from 50+-year-old vines on slate soils, some eight hectares on north-facing plots at 650 to 700 meters above sea level and fermented with 40% full clusters that were foot trodden in concrete, with a maceration of around 30 days, where it also underwent malolactic fermentation. The wine matured in underground concrete vats for seven months. It has a showy nose, with ripeness but without excess; they had to discard some grapes because they had both green and raising grapes in a bunch. It has fine, chalky tannins that are abundant and crunchier and a dry, clean finish. Approximately 30,000 bottles produced. It was bottled earlier, in March 2023, as they found it ready."