Albarroble Tinto Garnacha Tintorera
⏳ Drinking Window
2022 - 2027
🍽️ Food & Wine Pairings
Grilled lamb chops with rosemary, slow-braised oxtail, or aged Manchego cheese.
✨ Technical Specifications
Cultivated on elevated limestone plateaus over 800 meters above sea level, bush-trained vines yield concentrated fruit buffered by extreme diurnal temperature swings. This cuvée spotlights pure Garnacha Tintorera, celebrated for its dark-fleshed teinturier character and deep anthocyanin extraction. Fermentation takes place in temperature-regulated stainless steel vats to retain vibrant fruit expression and preserve innate floral and mineral nuances, followed by brief maturation designed to soften extraction without heavy oak masking.
🍾 About the Producer
Established in 1947 by 25 local viticulturists in the municipality of Alpera within Albacete, Bodegas Santa Cruz de Alpera serves as a benchmark cooperative enterprise in the D.O. Almansa. Situated in southeastern Spain at elevated altitudes exceeding 800 meters above sea level, the estate's extensive vineyards span limestone-rich, organic-poor soils subject to a stark continental climate modulated by Mediterranean influences. The winery oversees approximately 3,000 hectares of vineyard area, of which over 1,000 hectares are certified organic. Viticulture centers overwhelmingly on old-vine, bush-trained Garnacha Tintorera (Alicante Bouschet)—a red-fleshed teinturier grape indigenous to the local terroir. Winemaking combines temperature-controlled stainless steel fermentation and judicious oak maturation to preserve primary fruit intensity while mitigating harsh extraction. Benchmark bottlings include the Albarroble, Rupestre de Alpera, and Cueva del Chamán ranges, which showcase the varietal's distinctive combination of opaque crimson color, plush black fruit, balsamic lift, and structured, mineral-tinged tannins.
🍇 Grapes
100% Garnacha Tintorera
🍷 ABV
13.5% - 14.5%