2019 Bodegas Venta La Vega 'Ternario 1'

100% certified organic Garnacha Tintorera (aka Alicante Bouschet)  from 25 year old, dry farmed vineyards on limestone soils. Fermented with native yeasts, half in stainless steel and half in concrete. Aged in large French oak vats for six months before bottlign with minimal sulphur additions. 12.8% alcohol. 20,000 bottles made. The legendary Raúl Pérez Pereira is the winemaker here!

This pure expression of Garnacha is rustic, earthy and fruity at the same time. The nost shows off cherries and berries, flint and white pepper while the palate is much more savory and structured than the nose lets on. It’s got a spicy, dusty, earthy, cigar-box character while the bright fruit still peeks through. Chalky tannins with a long, dry finish. 

The expansive Venta La Vega spans over 2,000 acres in the arid southeast of Spain with an average altitude of 3,000’ above sea level.  It is the largest continuous plot of organic agricultural property in the EU, with over 600 of these limestone-laden acres nestled within the mountains of the Sierra de Mugrón, resulting in multiple microclimates. Bodegas Venta La Vega crafts two lines of wine featuring Garnacha Tintorera, the Spanish indigenous version of Alicante Bouschet: Ternario (Raul Perez as winemaker) and Adaras (Laura Ramos as winemaker). The winemakers’ philosophy is minimal intervention, short maceration, and reduced impact of wood. Together they have succeeded in creating wines with an excellent price/value ratio which are exquisitely balanced, fresh, and elegant.

92 points, James Suckling. "This smells really jammy with so much cherry and berry character. Some raspberries, too. Yet, on the palate it is full and linear with dusty tannins and a fresh finish. White pepper and spice on the finish. Very contrastive and fun to drink From organically grown grapes. Drink now."

91 points, Robert Parker's Wine Advocate. "The 2019 Ternario 1 is pure Garnacha Tintorera from the only trellised vineyard they have, planted ungrafted 25 years ago at 800 meters in altitude. The wine has 12.8% alcohol and good freshness. It fermented with some full clusters and matured in 20,000-liter oak vats and concrete for seven months. This is a little more austere than the Calizo, spicy and less forward, nuanced and with complexity but without the immediate fruit of the Calizo. There is more concentration here and more structure; the tannins are chalky and the texture serious, and the finish is long and dry. It looks like 2019 is going to be a pleasant and approachable year. 20,000 bottles produced. It was bottled in late June 2020."

91 points, Wine Enthusiast. "The scent of raspberry, rose petal and flint emanates from the glass. Bright cherry and pomegranate flavors encased in soft and silky tannins are accompanied by roasted fennelbulb, white-pepper, lavender and marjoram flavors."