Winemaker Notes
Bright ruby-red in color, Estrecho shows attractive aromas of red cherry, plum and wet slate. On the palate, the wine has refreshing acidity and bright fruit flavors.
Great match for spicy cured meats, seafood stews, or fritto misto.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The Monastrell 2019 Estrecho was produced with grapes from vines planted on sandy soils that matured in 2,000-liter French oak foudres for 16 months. The oak feels quite integrated, and the wine comes through as varietal with notes of esparto grass and tree bark with ripe berries and Mediterranean herbs. It's juicy, round and full-bodied with fine tannins and a long, dry and tasty finish. It should develop nicely in bottle.
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Wine Enthusiast
This dark ruby-colored wine has aromas of brambly fruits of the wood and herbes de Provence. It is juicy at first sip, with flavors of ripe cherry and pomegranate followed by dark chocolate, coffee bean and black-olive paste that add a layer of sophistication. Plush tannins settle in and then back off into an unexpectedly bright, fruity finish.
Full of ripe fruit, and robust, earthy goodness, Mourvèdre is actually of Spanish provenance, where it still goes by the name Monastrell or Mataro. It is better associated however, with the Red Blends of the Rhône, namely Chateauneuf-du-Pape. Mourvèdre shines on its own in Bandol and is popular both as a single varietal wine in blends in the New World regions of Australia, California and Washington. Somm Secret—While Mourvèdre has been in California for many years, it didn’t gain momentum until the 1980s when a group of California winemakers inspired by the wines of the Rhône Valley finally began to renew a focus on it.
Alicante is a port city in southeastern Costa Blanca and municipality in the Valencian Community of Spain. The eponymous DO is a non-contiguous appellation, divided between east and west. Along the eastern coast you find La Marina, a subzone known for its perfumed sweet white wines made from Moscatel de Alejandría; other white grape varieties include Merseguera and Malvasía. The drier, more extreme climate to the west is home to Monastrell, which accounts for 75% of total DO vineyard plantings. Other major red grape varieties include Garnacha Tintorera and Bobal, a thick-skinned black variety native to the Levante (the eastern edge of the Iberian Peninsula). Bobal had been destined for bulk wine production during much of its modern history but a new generation of winemakers today are taking advantage of the wide availability of old vine material, to produce full-bodied, concentrated wines, which are increasingly complex. In the last ten years, Alicante DO has gained popularity and respect for its new light, fresh wines and interesting varietal reds produced by pioneering bodegas.
Alongside the other wines emerging here, Alicante’s classic dessert wine, Fondillon, has been exported for centuries and is enjoying its own renaissance.