Valdaya, Ribera del Duero, Mirum Ribera Duero 2020 - 75cl

Ribera del Duero has no shortage of big, oak-driven reds. Valdaya went the other way. Marta Ramas and Miguel Fisac farm old parcels north of the Duero, up around 850 to 920 metres, where the nights are cold and the growing season runs long and slow. Those are the conditions that keep freshness in the fruit and give a wine somewhere to go, and the vines here, many of them between fifty and ninety years old, dig deep for what little the poor soils offer.

Mirum is their flagship. It is Tinto Fino, the local Tempranillo, from old bush vines on chalky, limestone soils, aged for roughly fifteen months in French oak. The result is Ribera with the volume turned down and the detail turned up. In the glass it shows dark plum and black cherry, but the fruit sits inside a frame of fine chalky minerality and violet-scented lift rather than sweet extract. There is cocoa and a whisper of oak spice, real tension through the middle, and tannins that are firm but polished.

It is structured without being heavy, a serious wine that still feels alive. The 2020 drinks well now with an hour in a decanter, and it has the balance to develop over the next five to eight years. This is a bottle for the table rather than the armchair, so open it alongside something to eat and let it stretch its legs. If you want to see where a small, thoughtful grower can take Ribera del Duero, this is a fine place to start, and a reminder that the region has more than one register to play in.

How to Serve

Serve at 16-17°C in a Bordeaux glass. Decant an hour ahead to let the dark fruit and violet florals open up.

Where to Drink It

• Sabor, Soho, where Nieves Barragan's Castilian roasts are made for a wine like this.
• Barrafina, Adelaide Street, at the counter with jamon and grilled meats.

Food Pairings

Roast lamb or suckling pig; aged Manchego rounds it off nicely.