Viña Sastre Pesus 2016
Viña Sastre Pesus 2016
Viña Sastre is a trailblazing Ribera del Duero winery with one foot solidly planted in tradition, and the other firmly in world-class winemaking. The secret to this success is Jesús Sastre’s unrivaled, meticulous vineyard management of his old tinto fino vines. Not only is Jesús highly-regarded as one of the finest viticultores of Ribera del Duero, his work is truly top-tier, expanding the realm of possibilities for all wines from Spain. He is an indefatigable innovator and among the most impressive viticultores we have ever encountered.
Jesús Sastre is the winemaker and vineyard manager whose intuitive philosophies and winemaking talents have been a driving force of the winery since 2002, following the passing of his brother Pedro. The Sastre family have been grape growers in La Horra since at least their great-grandfather’s days, providing Jesús with an unparalleled hereditary knowledge of the vineyards in his region. Jesús’ grandfather, Severiano, was a founding member of the local Asunción cooperative, and his father, Rafael, started the Sastre winery in 1992 at the urging of sons Pedro and Jesús.
Sastre produces big, powerful reds with lots of fruit, but they also have elevated freshness from their naturally high acidity with long, gently textured palates. Jesús Sastre performs a high-wire, tight-rope act, where the drinker can find everything in one wine, leaving them bewildered as to how he is able to pack such an adventure into each bottle. It’s like a delicious, vinous magic trick, performed without additions or subtractions, mind you—these wines are as natural as they come. However, Jesús would never subscribe to that simplistic label. He manages to achieve a level of sophistication and complexity unequaled by almost no other producer in Ribera del Duero.
Pesus is Sastre’s prestige wine, the name being a combination of Jesús and Pedro, his late brother and winery co-founder. Always among the best and most ambitious wines in the region, Pesus uses grapes from three different vineyards, two of which are over 100 years old. Pesus is a blend of 85% tempranillo (tino fino) from two small plots within the Regina Vides vineyard, plus 15% cabernet sauvignon and merlot from a parcel planted in 1983. The grapes for Pesus are individually hand-picked and selected by the family; the wine is produced in small quantities in only the best vintages. Less than 2,000 highly sought-after bottles are produced in a good vintage.