2016 Dolores Cabrera Fernandez ‘La Araucaria’ Tinto

Region:Tenerife < Canary Islands < Spain

Grapes:Listan Negro

Vineyard/Cellar Stats:Certified organic farming, 100-year old own-rooted vines planted using the unique 'cordón trenzado' (braided cord) methodon volcanic soil; destemmed, with primary fermentation in steel tank followed by aging in old Burgundy barrels for 10 months; bottled unfined/unfiltered with minimal SO2

Winemaker:Dolores Cabrera Fernández

Dolores Cabrera Fernández is a longtime farmer working northern Tenerife, the largest of the Canary Islands, where wine-growing dates back to the Spanish conquest of the 15th century. The island is entirely volcanic, and in in the Valle de la Orotava where Dolores’ vineyards are located, soils are relatively young and acidic, benefiting from a fresh dose of volcanic nutrients from time to time with ongoing eruptions from the fiery Pico del Teide (3^rdlargest active volcano in the world).  After selling her grapes, organic from the beginning, to larger producers for many years, Dolores started making her own wine in 2013. She works primarily with Listan Negro, the predominant grape of her region, sourced from 100+ year-old vines on the slopes of the volcano to make this savory and spicy chillable red.   With exotic spices and rustic elegance, this charming wine reminds you of an old gentleman farmer, with dirt under his fingernails, dust caked in his hair and a passion for poetry.  The flinty/stony mineral thing dominates at first, then you uncover layers of tangy plum, fig, chalk dust and black tea along with a certain salty character, dusty tannins and earthy rustic element.