Quintaluna Verdejo 2021, Ossian Vides y Vinos

This marvellous wine has a beautiful fragrance of golden apples, quince and a suggestion of pine woods. It’s rounded and creamy in texture, with lovely freshness and balance. A far cry from the homogenous vineyards of northern Rueda, an hour to the south in Nieva, there is a varied landscape of pine forests and massive slate boulders, interspersed with ancient vineyards planted on pure sand. 60% of the fruit that goes into Quintaluna comes from ungrafted vines, including some planted in the 19th Century (the sandy soil protects the vines from the Phylloxera louse, meaning that they can survive without having to be grafted). The vine age results in an intensity and complexity that is extremely rare in wines made with the Verdejo grape.