Envínate 'Benje' Tinto 2022

Envínate is a collective of winemakers, four friends from four different regions of Spain. Roberto Santana is from Tenerife, which is where this wine comes from. 'Benje' means mountain or crater in Amazigh, the language of the aboriginal people of the Canary Islands.

Benje comes from Santiago del Teide, a tiny village suspended at high elevation, flanked by the Teide volcano on one side. The last eruption on Tenerife happened here in 1905, lava pouring down, shaping everything. The settlers from Castilla arrived in the 16th century and planted bush vines because it gets hot down here, unlike the north. Those bush vines protect the grapes from burning under that brutal sun.

Listán Prieto, Listán Negro, and a touch of Tintilla. Ungrafted, clinging to volcanic sands at 900 to 1,200 metres. Fermented in concrete tanks and open tubs for fermentation, 10 to 20 days of maceration depending on the plot. Eight months in old French barriques on fine lees, no stirring, just time. The 2022 vintage is one of the most elegant Benje Tinto to date. Floral, expressive, precise. Wild strawberry and raspberry, volcanic ash and flint. Then rose petals and talcum powder, soft, velvety. Cherry brushed with sea breeze, smoky strawberry, crushed peppercorn. 

Bottled unfiltered. Drink it slightly chilled, with grilled meats, with a plate of cured things.