2020 EL ESQUILON RED

TRY ME IF YOU LOVE: Nebbiolo

ABV: 12.5%

GRAPES: Listan Negro, Garnacha 

TASTING NOTES: Fresh and peppery with smooth tannins and a volcanic mineral core, it shows pure whole-bunch fruit, smoky-herbal notes, and a balanced mix of brightness and depth, almost like a volcanic take on Nebbiolo.

PAIRS WITH: Pairs well with grilled red meats, hearty stews, savoury poultry dishes, and bold aged cheeses.

SERVE ME: Room temperature, decant if you can.

Suertes del Marqués has been leading Tenerife's vinous renaissance for the past two decades.

Francisco García Lima had been growing and selling most of his crop to local domaines since 1986 before he started producing wine commercially himself in 2006. He introduced organic, low-interventionist philosophies and his son Jonatan took over the estate in 2016. Suertes del Marqués has now become ground zero for a new wave of Tenerife fine wine; indeed, theirs is some of the most thrilling wine made in Spain today.

Jonatan farms 9ha of indigenous old-vine varieties – some more than 200 years old – on volcanic clay and sand soils in the steep Orotova Valley, an appellation where cloud cover moderates temperatures by some 10°C compared to the rest of the island. Trained with a rare technique called cordón trenzado, the long vine canes are painstakingly tied back to their sinewy roots after pruning, then propped off the floor with poles.