Sierra de Tolono Nahikun Blanco 2023

Sierra de Tolono Nahikun Blanco 2023

Sierra de Tolono
$45.00

Grape: Malvasia, Viura, Rojal, Calagrano
Vintage: 2023
Type: White

The Nahikun Blanco comes from some of Sandra's oldest vines, scattered around five micro plots near her village of Villabuena de Alava. She revived those vines, planted on shallow, rocky soils, not only with Malvasia and Viura, but also with Rojal, and Calagrano, some of the forgotten white varietals in the region. The wine is a field blend of all of these, made in 500 liter barrels.

Sierra de Tolono is Sandra Bravo's Rioja Alavesa project, based in the high, limestone-rich foothills below the Sierra de Cantabria. After working in several regions, Bravo returned to make wines that express the cooler, more Atlantic side of Rioja through old vines, organic farming and parcel selection around villages such as Rivas de Tereso. Her cellar work avoids the heavy oak signatures associated with classic Rioja, favoring native fermentations, concrete, amphora and used wood. The wines are fresh, floral and precise, built around Tempranillo, Garnacha, Viura and the mountain wind that preserves acidity in this part of the region.