El Goru Gold Monastrell/Syrah/Cabernet Sauvignon 2019 (Spain) - Wine Review

Tonight's red wine review is a lovely, vegan-friendly Monastrell-based blend from Jumilla in Spain that arrived at the LCBO over the weekend in the March 2, 2024 LCBO VINTAGES New Release Collection.

It is produced by Ego Bodegas, a winery project that was started from scratch in 2011 by Santos Ortiz, of Spanish origin, and Ioana Paunescu from Romania. The project was born out of the partners' passion and effort. While they were short on financial resources, they had an extraordinary talent for creating wines and coordinating the financial, marketing, and sales departments.

Together, Santos and Ioana, who are united and committed, both personally and professionally, built the winery from top to bottom, from the roof down. They fell in love with a spectacular farm in an area known as the carpenter's place, just a few kilometres away from the historical city of Jumilla. Situated in an elevated area, they enjoyed the beauty of the landscape which was surrounded by vineyards planted to Monastrell that were older than their combined ages. Their objectives were sales and profitability, as when these targets are achieved, it would guarantee the future of the company. The idea was simple: to achieve a balance between the three concepts of quality, image, and price, and then get to work to achieve that balance. The process took two years, and by 2013 Ego Bodegas had a good design, good pricing, and good wine that has been improving ever since, allowing the company to gain a foothold in over 30 countries.

Today, Ego Bodegas is a winery with modern facilities that improve quality and efficiency, and strives to seek out the best technology available. Since the beginning, they have taken a contemporary twist on winemaking by combining traditional methods with modern techniques. They have also been fascinated by the land and the magical combination of its soil and native grape variety - Monastrell, while devoting themselves to finding the best vineyards and obtaining the best fruit possible. Monastrell is a native variety to Jumilla and has best adapted to the climatic and soil conditions of the region. As such, more than 80% of the vineyards in Jumilla are planted to Monastrell. The climate in the region is continental, influenced by the Mediterranean in the east and by the plateau of La Mancha in the west. Along with a sunny and arid climate, it receives more than 3,000 hours of sunshine per year, and is one of the driest areas of Spain, averaging 300 litres per square metre in annual precipitation over the last few years. The soil in Jumilla is dark and enriched with lime, while also being permeable with good moisture retention, which helps the vines during periods of drought.

This red wine is a blend of mainly Monastrell (70%), which is also known as Mourvèdre and Mataro in other regions. Completing the blend is 20% Syrah, and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon. All the grapes were harvested by hand with a strict selection in the vineyard. In the cellar, maceration is supervised in order to reach the ideal wine profile. The pigeage technique for pumping down, which leads to a slower extraction and favours the development of varietal aromas. It underwent a temperature-controlled fermentation up to a maximum of 28ºC in order to extract the full potential of the grapes. It was aged for 12 months in new French and American oak barrels.

The 2019 growing season was a warm, dry year in Spain, with below average rainfall, an early summer heatwave for some regions, and very low levels of disease in the vineyards. Conditions were wet and windy during flowering, which kept yields naturally at a modest level, while berries and bunch weights were significantly smaller than the prior year. Harvest was extended into November, allowing for a long ripening season. According to Wines from Spain, 2019 may end up being one of the best vintages of the decade. Let's see how this 2019 Jumilla red from Spain is tasting tonight...

Tasting Note:

EL GORU GOLD MONASTRELL / SYRAH / CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2019 - Vegan, DOP Jumilla, Spain (#13621) (XD) - $19.95
This blend of 70% Monastrell, 20% Syrah, and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon has a fragrant, open, medium-high to highly aromatic nose that delivers a perfumed nose of spices, dark berry, blackberry, woodsy earth, and black plum. On the dry, medium-full bodied palate it offers delicious ripe black-purple fruit, blackberry, violet, cedar, earthy oak, and black pepper spice flavours that are framed by smooth, ripe, and refined tannins and crisp, juicy acidity. The mouthfeel has a supple grip on the mid-palate, while earthy oak and smoke notes linger on the long, balanced finish. Very nicely done. Enjoy this highly recommended buy over the next 4-5 years. Score: 89 pts

A few wines by Ego Bodegas can be found at the LCBO, while the entire portfolio can be ordered through their Agent - Kolonaki Fine Wines & Spirits.