El Puntido

D.O.Ca. Rioja

Páganos-Laguardia, La Rioja.

100% Tempranillo

El Puntido

1975

Practicing organic dry farmed viticulture with certain selective biodynamic practices. Vineyards trained as spur-pruned goblet vines as well as high density trellises. Manual work and harvest, with no mechanization whatsoever.

Calcareous clay soils that are typical to Laguardia. Limestone rich clay soils that are sandwiched between large slabs of lime-sandstone mother rock.

Continental with heavy Atlantic influences that are moderated by the Sierra Cantabria.

The grapes undergo rigorous double-manual sorting, both before and after destemming. 100% of the clusters are destemmed, but not crushed. Temperature controlled fermentation in 5,000L vats (inoculated) with neutral yeasts selected and cultured from their vineyards and cellars. Maceration lasts 20-30 days. Malolactic fermentation is spontaneous and is carried out in new barrique.

16 months in new French barrique in subterranean cellars. The first six months are carried out sur lie. The wine is racked every four to six months.

On the heels of the Spanish Civil War, land in Rioja was selling at rock-bottom prices, and while the Eguren family were growers based in San Vicente, the family's ancestors began buying up land in Rioja Alavesa in the hamlet of Páganos-Laguardia. In 1975, Guillermo Eguren planted the 25Ha. El Puntido single vineyard on south facing slopes on extremely shallow soils at the vertical limit of where Tempranillo could ripen in Rioja. El Puntido was launched in 2001 to capture the mineral and structured expression of Tempranillo from this spectacular site.