Verónica Ortega Tormenta 2023
£40.70 (Inc. VAT bot. 75 cl.) / North Ireland
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The Godello grapes were the first picked in 2023, and the alcoholic degree went up a little for the 2023 Tormenta, which reached 13.5% alcohol but kept a low pH of 2.95 and retained 7.75 grams of acidity. It comes from 0.8 hectares of the small-berry old Godello biotype planted 27 years ago on clay and limestone soils that provide a unique profile to this white. It fermented with indigenous yeasts and matured in barrels of different sizes and 800-liter clay amphorae for 15 months. It has a very serious nose, clean and super elegant, it gives a sensation of harmony and subtleness that I like very much. This is a rarity because it comes from limestone soils that give it a special tastiness, almost salty, and a vibrant and chalky feeling. This is very different from the rest of the Godellos from Bierzo; it's more about the soil and place. 4,220 bottles produced. It was bottled in November 2024.
Features
Type of wine
Pairings
Style
Occasions
Winery
Size
Country
Region
Appellation
Alcohol
12.0%
Grapes
Serving
Between 8ºC and 10ºC
Winemaking
Skin soaking for a few hours and direct pressing. Fermented with indigenous yeasts and aged for 13 months in 600, 500 and 225-litre oak barrels and 800-litre amphorae.
Description
On the northern margins of Bierzo, in San Juan de la Mata, at 650 metres above sea level, Verónica Ortega found a little gem: a vineyard of barely 0.8 hectares of old Godello, planted 27 years ago in traditional goblet vines, supported by stakes as it was done in the old days, when time was short and viticulture was an act of devotion. There, in a clay-limestone soil that is unusual in this part of Bierzo, Verónica Ortega Tormenta is born, a wine that does not impose itself by volume, but by character.
Verónica Ortega, known for her meticulous approach and extreme sensitivity towards the vineyard, decided from the outset to let the soil do the talking. The decision to vinify this parcel separately was as radical as it was honest: the limestone profile of the land offered a sharp, pure Godello, pure nerve, different from the rest. Even with the risk of a meagre production, he decided not to intervene more than necessary, letting the natural tension of the vineyard express itself without filters. His choice to work with the old clone of Godello - less productive, with small berries and thick skin - reinforces the concentration and depth of a wine that does not seek to please, but to reveal.
Winemaking
Verónica Ortega Tormenta is vinified as a quiet confession. The grapes, harvested by hand with scrupulous precision, are pressed whole without destemming. Spontaneous fermentation takes place without added yeasts, respecting the time of the wine rather than the calendar. Ageing is divided between 800-litre clay amphorae and 600 and 225-litre French oak barrels for 15 months. No new wood, no rush. Just the intention to maintain the vibrant pulse of the vineyard without making up for its energy. The result: 4,220 bottles that capture the purest essence of the chalky Godello.
Taste
Verónica Ortega Tormenta is not a wine to shout about, but to listen to. The nose opens discreetly, revealing notes of green tea and camomile flower, light flashes of lime blossom and an echo of citrus fruit between lime and white grapefruit. Everything in its place, without artifice. But it is on the palate that the wine reveals its true architecture: vertical, surgical precision, with an incisive freshness that cleanses and lengthens. The salinity comes through elegantly, like a sea breeze that frames the chalky minerality withoutovershadowing its finesse. Verónica Ortega Tormenta does not seek to seduce with volume, but to thrill with its purity. A Godello with a serious look, austere profile and silent beauty. A wine for those who are looking for tension, depth and truth in wine.
Shipping to North Ireland
50% discount on orders over £353.07Estimated transit time: 4-5 working days.
| Bottles | Price | Over £353.07 |
|---|---|---|
| 1-6 | £11.39 | £5.69 (-£5.69) |
| 7-12 | £15.45 | £7.72 (-£7.72) |
| 13-18 | £21.63 | £10.81 (-£10.81) |
| 19-24 | £29.57 | £14.78 (-£14.78) |
| 25-30 | £34.34 | £17.17 (-£17.17) |
| 31-36 | £38.40 | £19.20 (-£19.20) |
| 37-42 | £46.34 | £23.17 (-£23.17) |
| 43-48 | £50.75 | £25.38 (-£25.38) |
| 49-54 | £57.33 | £28.67 (-£28.67) |
| 55-60 | £61.61 | £30.81 (-£30.81) |
| VAT included | ||
