La Quinta Cruz 2018

I also tasted the 2018 Mazuelo de la Quinta Cruz, which follows the style of the 2017 with a bright ruby color and a classical, clean and balanced nose that denotes youth. The nose was a bit closed and took time to take off, but the perfumed fruit was noticeable in the palate straight away. It's only 12.5% alcohol, a little lighter and certainly more ethereal than the 2017, but it seems to have developed full flavors through a slow ripening process. This 2018 went through malolactic and 14 months aging in four 500-liter casks and five 225-liter barriques, and the oak is neatly folded into the wine. Transparent is a word that comes to mind. Purity and symmetry. 3,200 bottles were filled in March 2020.

Selection was vital in 2018, but the producers who made the right decisions in the vineyard made some superb wines. This stunning Mazuelo is a case in point. All sourced from a single parcel on the Monte Calvario near the River Ebro, it's pale, scented and refined, like a cross between a Barolo and a Burgundy, with notes of red fruits and tobacco, fresh acidity and granular tannins. 2023-32