2022 Ponce, Bodegas y Vinedos Ponce
£240 per 6 bottle case in bond
This is one offer of which you should take particular note. Why? This wine is hugely impressive and highly individual. It isn’t a style or a region that is particularly well known, hence the fact the price remains remarkably fair for the impressive quality on offer. It has become a favourite with many of our clients, who have been purchasing wines from more diverse origins. The wine also exudes a beautiful ripeness, and yet the alcohol seldom exceeds 12.5%, which is certainly modest these days, and particularly for a Spanish red. The key is simple: the grapes come from vineyards at altitude and the winemaking is highly skilled, focusing on a gentle extraction. So, if you have been hanging back waiting for a truly compelling offer, then this hits the mark. The 2022 Ponce from Bodegas y Viñedos Ponce, offered here at £240 per 6 bottle case in bond, is simply one of those wines, and must rank as their finest wine to date. Read on for more background.
First things first :
- A quick and necessary reminder: the name of the family and estate is Ponce, pronounced ‘pon-thay’.
- These are truly world-class wines from a grape variety than is not often championed; Bodegas y Viñedos Ponce brings out a rare distinction in Bobal, the grape variety employed, and the results are sensational.
This small estate was founded by Juan Antonio Ponce in 2005 at the age of 23. His family had been growing grapes in the region for generations but had not previously bottled their own wines. Their estate is situated in Manchuela, due west of Valencia. Bobal is the dominant grape variety in this territory and, together with Ribera del Júcar and Utiel-Requena, Manchuela completes the trio of Denominación de Origen. The Ponce family owns approaching 70 hectares of vineyard today in the villages of Iniesta, Villanueva de la Jara, Villamalea and Mahora, yet tends to produce small volumes of multiple wines from different parcels. A recent addition of 17 hectares, at higher altitudes enabled them to add the white Albillo to their holding, as well as reds Monastrell and Garnacha that are seldom seen in Manchuela. Juan Antonio’s approach is to express the differences between the vineyards and today his estate is farmed according to biodynamic principles.
Bobal has been cultivated here for hundreds of years and is well-suited to these conditions; it possesses a thick skin, delivers ripe fruit, and crucially retains its acidity well even in this dry climate, producing age-worthy wines. The hillside vineyards here permit some spectacular sloping vineyards at lofty altitudes. Ponce’s vineyards are planted at an altitude of 700 metres or more and consist of vines averaging 50 years of age, with the oldest more than 80 years. Yield is an important consideration with Bobal and old vines with their naturally lower yield allow for a limited, yet intense crop. As I commented before, the name ‘Bobal’ is said to have come from the Latin ‘bovale’ meaning shaped like the head of bull and is said to relate to the appearance of the clusters of tightly packed grapes on the vine.
The winemaking approach at Ponce is remarkably traditional, though very little sulphur dioxide is used to preserve the wines. The aim is to produce wine as naturally as makes sense. The grapes are fermented with their stems, as is an increasing trend in modern-day Burgundy. The stems, when ripe, are a valuable source of tannins and add a spicy complexity to the resultant wines. Considerable care is taken to avoid extracting harsh tannins from the skins of the fruit; after all, Bobal is rich in colouring material and tannin anyway. The wines are usually aged in large barrels of 600 litres for 10-12 months before being bottled. As you might expect from their approach, no fining or filtration is employed.
Luis Gutiérrez scored the 2022 vintage at 98 points in January this year. At that point he remarked that Juan Antonio Ponce believes the
‘2022 is the best vintage for them so far, which he deems "classical" in the zone, with abundant winter and spring rains and a warm and dry summer with some rain in late September that allowed the wines to keep normal alcohol levels with finesse, elegance, balance and the Mediterranean character.’ As I mentioned above, in my view, based on tasting the last five vintages, this is comfortably the finest they have produced – it really is quite something. Luis Gutiérrez scores the 2022 at the same level as the impressive 2020, which itself received a glowing 98-point endorsement, which placed it within a small number of Spanish wines to receive such a high score. He also stated that it had to be one of the finest wines made in Central Spain. I place the 2022 a notch ahead, but it would be hard to argue with his assertion that this is one of Spain’s finest reds, and at just
£240 per 6 bottle case in bond.