Master of Wine Fernando Mora has crafted a Spanish Grenache that will make your head spin. Mora's 2024 Microcosmico Garnacha had me spinning with joy when I tasted it recently.
There’s such transparency of grape and place flowing throughout this ripe, fresh, and aromatic red, and I fully endorse the 93-point rating that Robert Parker's Wine Advocate gave it... for the third vintage in a row.
Tasted blind, I'd call this as top-notch, village-level Red Burgundy. That would run you $40+...
Bodegas Frontonio is the personal project of young-gun Fernando Mora. He and his team own 50 hectares of beautiful, old, organic bush vines in the Valdejalon IGP of Aragon, where it is believed that Grenache originated. These 60+ year-old vines are grown in limestone soils at nearly 2,000 feet in elevation, with a cooler, north-facing exposure.
This combination gives us a more vibrant, high-toned style of Garnacha that is much lower in alcohol at 12.5% and higher in acidity than most of its peers. The slower ripening also coaxes out prettier, brighter, and zestier aromas and flavors than you typically encounter in Spanish Garnacha.
Fermented with native yeasts and 25% whole clusters in concrete vats, this pours a gorgeous ruby color and smells of pomegranate, blood orange, cherry, white pepper, and savory herbs. Medium-bodied, silky, and lively on the palate, this gets the mouth watering with flavors of freshly picked cherry, strawberry, and cranberry.
Enjoy this with dishes you'd usually have with Pinot Noir -- poultry, pork, or salmon would do the trick. I like to give this one a slight chill too. Trust me, it works!
Josh Spurling
Owner, Operator, Wine Monger
Table Wine Asheville
