Conde de Hervías Trinidad del Conde de Hervías 2019

Conde de Hervías is a tiny, highly specialized estate in the village of Torremontalbo in northern Rioja Alta. The project was led by Íñigo Manso de Zúñiga Ugartechea and his wife and winemaking partner, Yolanda García Viadero, who also comes from the family behind Ribera del Duero's Bodegas Valduero. Their focus has always been on historic vineyards and traditional Rioja rather than large scale production or commercial categories. The estate is particularly remarkable for its holdings of very old, pre phylloxera tempranillo vines, including parcels planted in the late 19th century.

Trinidad del Conde de Hervías is the estate's village wine, bringing together fruit from three distinct vineyards in Torremontalbo, all planted to the area's ancestral tempranillo selections. Romero was planted in 1978 on calcareous clay, Llano Alto dates to 1958 and grows on ferrous calcareous clay with river stones, and a portion comes from Las Arenillas, a remarkable pre phylloxera vineyard planted in 1874 on sandy calcareous clay. The combination gives the wine a broader picture of Torremontalbo while still being deeply rooted in place. The vines are traditionally goblet trained, hand harvested and farmed organically.

Each vineyard is harvested and vinified separately. The grapes are completely destemmed and crushed before spontaneous fermentation with native yeasts in large 5,000 liter stainless steel tanks. The wine then spends 12 months in used French and American oak barrels before the different components are blended and allowed to rest in large neutral foudres. It is bottled unfined and unfiltered. The approach balances traditional Rioja aging with a real emphasis on freshness, site and the character of the fruit rather than heavy new oak.

The 2019 is a beautifully expressive Rioja, with lively red and blue fruit, floral notes, cola, smoke and warm spice. Raspberry and boysenberry carry through the palate, which is smooth and expansive but still energetic, with silky tannins and a long, savory finish. It has the depth and complexity of traditional Rioja without feeling heavy, making it a great introduction to the distinctive old vine wines of Conde de Hervías.