Vintage: 2019
| Vintage | Product Code | Format | Closure | Availability |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | VE202A19 | 12 x 75 | Natural Cork | Available |
Producer
The Antón family (of Izadi and Finca Villacreces) have also invested in the Toro DO, purchasing 20 hectares of Tinta de Toro (the local name for Tempranillo) vines in 2003 for their Vetus project. These 25 to 60-year-old, south-facing vineyards are located on sandy and clay soils in Villabuena del Puente.
Growing conditions in this area are extreme, with cold winters, frost, strong winds and hot summers all presenting huge viticultural challenges. The vineyard’s poor soils create low yields, resulting in wines with excellent flavour and colour intensity. However, high temperatures and 3,000 sunshine hours per year can bring high alcohol levels without effective vine canopy management.
Vetus’ ‘Flor de Vetus’ Toro, is made from 100% Tinto de Toro and has a deep, black cherry colour with expressive aromas of red and black berry fruits and touches of spice from time spent in American and French oak. It offers a fresher, more accessible style, designed to be drunk in its youth, compared to its more premium Toro counterpart which spends more time in bottle before release. Vetus’ Toro is well structured, with robust tannins that are typical of the DO and bright aromas of red berry fruit, smoke, toast and oak. The resulting wine is well-balanced, with a long, powerful finish. This complexity is in part due to the wine being matured in new, French oak barrels.
The Antón family also own vineyards in Rueda, to the east of the Toro DO. The ‘Flor de Vetus’ Rueda is made from 100% Verdejo, sourced from an 80-year-old vineyard planted at an elevation of 820 metres in the cool area of Segovia, giving a crisp and fresh style of white wine.
Vineyards
The 20 hectares of vineyard are located in the Villabuena del Puente municipality within the Toro DO. The climate here is continental with hot and often very dry summers and cold winters. The vineyards are on south-facing slopes with sandy and clay soils and sit at around 700 metres above sea level. At this altitude, there is a wide diurnal range and the grapes benefit from warm days tempered by cool nights and undergo a perfectly paced slow ripening. The 30-year-old vines are dry farmed and yields are naturally low at around five tonnes per hectare on average. Harvesting is done by hand and the vineyards are farmed organically.
Vintage
The 2019 vintage commenced with a mild and dry winter. Virtually no rainfall was seen during spring and summer and these conditions, coupled with episodes of extreme heat, resulted in smaller bunches of highly concentrated grapes; a top-quality vintage with good structure and colour, and moderated alcohol levels. 2019 vintage wines stand out for their intense colour and extraordinary structure.
Vinification
Upon arrival at the winery, the grapes were rigorously sorted to ensure that only those in pristine condition made it into the wine. The grapes were then destemmed and partially crushed and transferred to temperature-controlled stainless-steel tanks for fermentation with regular punch downs. After fermentation, the wines underwent malolactic fermentaion in tank and were then racked into oak barrels where they aged for nine months. The barrels were a combination of French and American oak, with 50% new oak used, the other 50% was second use.
Tasting Notes & Technical Details
The wine is deep ruby in colour with a violet hue. On the nose, aromas of ripe red and black fruit are complemented by spicy nuances of liquorice and caramel. The palate marries power and elegance with an excellent concentration and balance of flavour and acidity, all culminating in a lingering finish.
Alcohol (ABV)
14.5%
Other wines from this producer
Producer | Wine | Product Code | Features | Style | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vetus | Toro | VE201 | Vegetarian Vegan | R Red | |
| `Flor de Vetus` Rueda Verdejo | VE203 | W White |