Bodegas Mauro ‘Mauro’ Vino Tinto de la Tierra de Castilla y Leon, Spain 2021

Red wine made from 85% Tempranillo grapes, with 15% Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Graciano, grown in Tudela del Duero and Traspinedo, aged for 15 months in French oak, partly in large vats (foudres) and partly in new and used barrels. Over recent vintages, this wine has moved toward greater freshness and a more restrained use of wood, enhancing its fluidity and tension and bringing out the clarity of its red and black fruits. This 2021 vintage, for example, impresses with its reactive, fine-grained tannins, excellent acidity, and captivating, persistent finish with earthy, floral hints, along with notes of plums, cherries, herbs, spices, and licorice. Defined, refined, and precise.