Teso la Monja Toro 'Teso La Monja' 2017 (750ml) *
Product price
$2,238.99
Description
Tempranillo grown in Toro, in Spain's Castilla y León, this is the top bottling from Teso la Monja, drawn entirely from a single 1.8-hectare parcel that carries more limestone than is typical for the zone. The 2017 came from one of the driest, earliest years on record, and the fruit was hand destemmed, fermented in an open oak vat, put through malolactic in an egg-shaped oak vessel, and then raised in three new Bordeaux barrels. Yields were tiny, ripeness was full (the wine sits at 15.1% alcohol), and yet freshness holds.
Expect a wine that shows itself openly: black, blue, and red fruits alongside violet, sandalwood, vanilla, and a thread of floral incense. The oak is generous and grows more assertive with air, but there's enough fruit density through the mid-palate to carry it, and the balance to integrate over time. Full-bodied, with an almost silken texture and very fine tannins that carry a chalky, textural grip rather than any bitterness, it closes long and layered. Give it several years in the cellar and it will reward patience for a good while after.
Product Details
| Category | Wine |
| Country | Spain |
| Region | Castilla y Leon |
| Subregion | Toro |
| Varietal | Tempranillo |
| Producer | Teso La Monja |
| Vintage | 2017 |
| Size | 750 ML |
| Subtype | Still |
Expert Reviews
Coming from a tiny parcel and all Tempranillo, aged in three new barrels, the 2017 Teso la Monja is another beautiful, seamless, exotic wine from this estate. Giving up loads of black, blue, and red fruits as well as violet, sandalwood, vanilla bean, and flowery incense, it's full-bodied on the palate, has a gorgeous texture, ultra-fine tannins, and one heck of a finish. There's a lot of oak here, which becomes more prominent with air, yet there's ample fruit, mid-palate density, and the balance for it evolve beautifully and integrate. Hide bottles for 4-6 years and enjoy over the following 20-25+. (Jeb Dunnuck, June 2022)
The eponymous top-of-the-range 2017 Teso la Monja comes from one of the driest and earliest years in history. The wine is ripe and hits the scale at 15.1% alcohol while keeping good freshness and acidity. It's always produced with the grapes from a 1.8-hectare plot that has more limestone than the average in the zone; the grapes were hand destemmed by a team of 75 people, fermented in an open oak vat and went through malolactic in an egg-shaped oak vat built by Taransaud, an "Ovum," where the wine was kept until July 2018. The élevage continued in three new Bordeaux barrels from July 2018 to February 2020 when they bottled 890 bottles. The wine is ripe and oaky, quite extroverted, aromatic and open. The vineyard receives the north wind, and it's cooler than other vineyards—the ripening is slower and very homogeneous. It's also floral, and the tannins feel a little stiff, with the chalky sensation on the palate, a texture rather than a flavor. They get only 500 kilos of grapes per hectare, which brings perfect ripeness. This is a wine that needs a long time in bottle; this is still marked by the élevage, and I still cannot picture where this is going to go, we'd need a time machine for that. (Wine Advocate, June 2021)