97/100 RP | Drink: 2025-2037. The single-vineyard wine from Toro, the 2021 Pago La Jara was cropped from an exceptional year in the zone. The year was quite mild and with abundant rain at the end of the season, which created some problems with fungus, but the wines have great balance, fine and polished tannins and a fleshy texture. It has a moderate 14% alcohol and more freshness and acidity than its siblings. This fermented in 3,000-liter oak vats and matured in barrels and 1,500-liter foudres for 18 months. There's ripeness and fruit, and it's both powerful and elegant. It has a full-bodied palate and abundant tannins, but the quality of the tannins is superb—they ripened to perfection in 2021, and the wine kept very good balance. Only 2,208 bottles produced. It was bottled in August 2023. Telmo Rodríguez and his business partner, Pedro Eguzkiza, work in the three main appellations in the Duero region—Ribera del Duero, Toro and Rueda. We visited some of the vineyards in Ribera, where they have multiple plots in different vineyards but where they decide to make a single wine. It was a little bit like time traveling to the Ribera del Duero from yesteryear, only head-pruned vines and classical wines. We talked about the great wines from the past, like the 1986 Janus from Pesquera, 1989 Valsotillo, 1996 Hacienda Monasterio... We also tasted the whole range of current releases, of course.
Land: Spanje
Jaartal: 2021
Regio: Castilië-Leon
Appelatie / Herkomst: Toro DO
Druivenras: Tempranillo
Serveertemperatuur: 16-18°C
