Vega Tolosa 11 Pinos Bobal Old Vines 2011
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Manchuela lies to the northeast of the La Mancha meseta between the Júcar and Cabriel River valleys, and well above the coastal plains of Valencia and Alicante. It represents the ancestral home of one of Spain’s most interesting and underappreciated red varieties, the Bobal.
Vega Tolosa was founded by the Tolosa family in 1905, currently with 150 hectares (375 acres) under vine. Of this, 100 acres is head-pruned Bobal, all over 80 years old. As Bobal has suffered massive uprooting in favor of international varieties in recent decades, this represents a cultural patrimony for Juan Miguel Tolosa, third generation of the winemaking family.
At over 750 meters in altitude, Vega Tolosa’s vineyards enjoy a wide diurnal temperature variation and constant breeze. Calcareous clay soils retain moisture and provide minerality. Minimal treatments are required in the vineyards, the viticulture in most years being completely organic.
Through low yields and careful winemaking, the purest expression of Bobal is the Tolosa family’s primary objective.
Bobal is enjoying a mini renaissance in Spain today as high-elevation vineyards in its homeland of Utiel-Requena produce dense and velvety wines dominated by dark berry and cocoa characteristics. However, its function as Spain’s second most planted red grape variety was once only for bulk wine and concentrate. Since it is drought-resistant, it does well grown as unirrigated bush vines and acts as a fine voice of terroir. Somm Secret—Bobal also shows great potential for rosé and sparkling wines because of its high levels of acidity and anthocyanins.
The Moors gave it the name, ‘Manxa,’ which fittingly means ‘parched earth.’ La Mancha, the largest Spanish wine producing region in all of Spain, is one of its hottest and driest. Sturdy and drought-resistant white varieietes like Airen, Viura and Verdejo thrive in this environment.