2022 Dominio de Pingus Cuvée Amelia

There is some exuberance in the 2022 Amelia. It comes from a very old vineyard (apparently planted in 1885), but what's important is the plant material—small bunches and curly leaves—which resembles the old plants he had seen. There are some 500 plants, vinified separately and bottled since 2003, a cuvée sold exclusively to their US importer. It fermented with 50% full clusters in a small 500-liter stainless steel tank and then was pressed and put in barrel until bottling. It has some creaminess, and Sisseck thinks the stems give it a different dimension, avoiding the astringency of unripe tannins in less-ripe years. It has some grippy tannins that are chalky, a little powdery and serious. This is harmonious and should develop nicely in bottle. There's no heat or excess ripeness. They did a massal selection of some 200 vines from there that are used to plant other vineyards. 280 bottles were filled in late June 2024.