2016 Alto Moncayo Aquilon

Bodegas Alto Moncayo was created in 2002 by Jorge Ordoñez and noted Australian winemaker Chris Ringland. Spanish by birth, Ordoñez has for more than 25 years been one of the most important importers of Spanish wines in the U.S., and he has also remained involved in the ownership and management of several Spanish wineries, including Bodegas Borsao, in the Campo de Borja appellation. Ringland earned his reputation making 100-pt Shiraz in the Barossa Valley before becoming a consulting winemaker for innovative winemaking projects around the world. At the 153-acre Bodegas Alto Moncayo, also in DO Campo de Borja, Ordoñez and Ringland have teamed up to make Garnacha, the Spanish name for Grenache, from vines between 40 and 70 years old. They named their flagship wine Alto Moncayo after El Moncayo, which at 2,313 feet above sea level is the tallest peak in Iberian mountain range. The grapes used for Alto Moncayo come from vineyards as high as 1,600 feet. Reviewers have been impressed. Robert M. Parker Jr. rated both the 2007 and 2009 Alto Moncayo at 100 pts, calling the wines “two of the greatest expressions of old vine Grenache from the province of Aragon that anyone could desire.” The estate also makes two other 100% Garnacha wines, Aquilon and Veraton. All have earned ratings in the mid- to-high 90s.

Campo de Borja Demoninación de Origen is in the northwestern region of Aragon near the city of Zaragoza, about half way between the Atlantic and the Mediterranean. From an agricultural standpoint, it is a transitional zone between the Iberian mountains and the Ebro river plains. The climate is cold and dry in the winter, and hot and dry in the summer, making for challenging farming. Vineyards are planted on plateaus and mountainsides as high as 1,800 feet above sea level, and the appellation’s soil has a high lime content. Nearly 17,000 vineyard acres are included in the appellation. The traditional grape grown here is Garnacha, or Grenache. Other grapes authorized in the DO are Tempranillo, Mazuela, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah, Macabeo and Moscatel. Wine grapes were likely brought to the area by the Romans, and were certainly cultivated by the Cistercian monks during the Middle Ages. After phylloxera killed most of the vines in the 19th centuries, Cistercian monks replanted the area. The appellation denomination as awarded in 1980. Once known for producing grapes that went to bulk winemaking – and thus dismissed as an appellation of little importance to wine connoisseurs -- the region today is enjoying a new reputation as home to some of Spain’s most acclaimed new wineries.

One of the most popular red varieties planted, it ripens late and prefers hot dry climates. It probably originated in Spain, where it is still widely grown. Grenache is best known for its use in Southern Rhone wines, including those of Chateauneuf-du-Pape.