2023 Envinate - Listan Prieto Tenerife Benje (750ml)

The iconic Ameztoi Rubentis rosé is a field blend of the local, indigenous hondarrabi zuri and hondarrabi beltza varieties, grown on traditional trellises high on the slopes rising above Getaria, an ancient Basque fishing village on Spain’s rugged northern coast. In the 2000s, when almost all of the other local wineries gave up on the indigenous red hondarrabi beltza vines, the Ameztoi family retained their old vines, in turn, lending their rosé such exceptional vibrancy and complexity.

Rubentis, the region’s first pink wine, was inspired by the historic claret style wines which were once produced in the area long before the current global craze made rosé famous. The backbone of the blend comes from an old hondarrabi beltza vineyard planted in 1840, preserved by the Ameztoi family for generations. Ameztoi Rubentis is an authentic original, a wine that is often imitated but never replicated.

Vinification – After handpicking, hondarrabi zuri and hondarrabi beltza grapes are combined for destemming; the white and red grapes are worked together, not separately. After direct pressing, fermentation with indigenous yeast occurs in stainless steel at 15°C for 20 days. Towards the end of alcoholic fermentation, the tanks are closed to preserve the naturally occurring carbonation, which is the preferred style of Getaria. The tanks are then kept chilled to near freezing before bottling, which preserves the wine’s delicate, effervescent character and signature mousse. These attributes are unattainable through shortcuts such as force-carbonation, which Ameztoi has never employed.

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TREJ is Barbera, Nebbiolo and Dolcetto in equal parts.

The brothers Luigi and Alfredo Grasso started in the vineyard in 1970 and continue to actively cultivate 14 hectares. The Grasso Fratelli farm is located in Valgrande in the municipality of Treiso, in the heart of the Langhe, a typical area known for the cultivation of the vines from which the best and prestigious Piedmontese wines are born. In this area, nowadays very popular also for its splendid nature, the Nebbiolo grape variety from which Barbaresco wine originates is cultivated with particular care.

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