Artuke El Escolladero 2020

The 2020 El Escolladero and the La Condenada feel more backward than the rest of the 2020s. This comes from a zone known as El Meadero (not a very nice name in Spanish, I wouldn't bother putting it on the label), from a 0.95-hectare plot on clay and limestone soils in the village of Ábalos that was planted in 1950 at 660 meters in altitude. It's one of their single-vineyard bottlings, produced with 85% Tempranillo and the rest Graciano that ripened thoroughly to 14.1% alcohol, delivering a powerful and elegant wine. It is concentrated and balanced, still young and a little marked by the élevage in 600-liter oak foudres for 12 months. 1,424 bottles were filled in January 2022.

El Escolladero combines Tempranillo and 15% Graciano from a clay and limestone-rich site at 650 metres in Ábalos. It's one of the darkest and most concentrated wines in the Artuke portfolio, showing plum and damson fruit flavours, understated wood, firm tannins, lovely purity, focus and balance and a twist of white pepper. 2025-35