Vega Sicilia Pintia Toro 2012

A very warm wine, robust and meaty but also unexpectedly fresh. While its ""brother"" is more fruity, this ""Pintia Toro"" is more rustic and oaky. The Toro region is close to Portugal so it is a very sunny area. The sun brings the power to the wine but the Duero river is not that far so we also get some fresh acidity.

There's so much going on, whether on the nose or palate, that we don't even know where to start. This wine needs at least two hours of breathing but while you do this you should pour a glass and check its nose and the evolution that takes place during those two hours. Each time you will feel that you're smelling a different wine and you'll be thinking about a blue sky and sunflowers rather than Christmas roses.

Many consider Vega Sicilia to be one of Spain’s ‘First Growths;’ and responsible for the illustrious reputation of the Ribera Del Duero. It was founded in 1864 by Don Eloy Lecanda y Chaves, who arrived from Bordeaux with cuttings of local grapes (Cab. Sauvignon, Merlot and Malbec) and planted them, together with Spain's signature grape Tinto Fino (Tempranillo) in Ribera del Duero.
Vega Sicilia has changed hands several times, most recently it was bought by the Alves family in 1982. It was then the foundations were laid for TEMPOS Vega Sicilia. It has constantly and steadily grown since then, involving the introduction of wines produced in different wine-making areas, reaching out to new consumers around the world and laying the foundations for a promising and highly successful future.
Vega Sicilia focus on blending international varietals with Tino Fino; typically, Bordeaux varietals and allow them to mature in both cask and bottle for an extensive period of time. Vega Sicilia’s flagship wine is Unico, with the Valbuena bottled when the vintage is considered not quite good enough to produce this legendary wine.
There has been significant innovation in recent years with the development of Bodegas Alion, a wine designed to be of very high quality but ready to drink much younger than other wines in the portfolio.
Vega Sicilia have recently bought land in Toro, raising the profile of the region with their Pintia bottling which illustrates the incredible concentration that can be garnered from Toro.