Pago La Jara Toro 2013 (95 WA)

“2013 was a crazy year in Toro, with snow as late as April 28th, and the 2013 Pago La Jara benefitted from this late harvest with lower alcohol and pH than normal. They had to sort out the grapes to get rid of the botrytis and be able to produce this old vine cuvée, which fermented in 3,000-liter oak vats with indigenous yeasts and matured in French barriques and 1,500-liter oak foudres for 18 months. It has great freshness, moderate ripeness and perfectly integrated oak, with just a smoky and flinty whiff, where the larger volume seems important to respect the character of the wine, letting it breath and keep its personality. This is harmonious and rustically elegant, with abundant, fine-grained tannins and good balance. It has everything—and all in good balance and harmony—to develop nicely and for a long time in bottle. The nose is still shy and has an incipient perfume that should bloom with time in bottle. 2,640 bottles produced, the shortest vintage to date.”