Marañones 2022

The 2022 Marañones Garnacha Tinta is great but has tough competition in the shape of the 2023 vintage of this same wine. This is their estate Garnacha, sourced exclusively from the main property located in the lieu-dit that names the project and this wine. There are different kinds of granite—white, pink and brown—and there's also a diversity of expositions and altitudes where the old vines, ranging from 50 to 70 years of age, extract the nutrients from deep down in the soil that is transferred to the wine in the shape of a texture (to me, minerality is a texture, not an aroma or flavor) that is fine-boned, with small granularity and a sense of freshness and saltiness. It has 14.5% alcohol and a pH of 3.48, coupled with 5.02 grams of acidity. It fermented in 3,000- to 4,500-liter oak vats and stainless steel and matured in oak and concrete vats ranging from 1,000 to 5,000 liters of capacity for some 15 months. 22,250 bottles produced. It was bottled in the spring of 2024. (Luis Gutiérrez)