Wine Advisor
Envinate, Palo Blanco 2020
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Luis Gutiérrez
I was blown away by a magnum of the white 2020 Palo Blanco I drank a few days before I tasted it again with its creators. Palo Blanco is the name of a zone in the village of Los Realejos in Tenerife, one of the finest locations for Listán Blanco (Palomino). In 2020 they used the grapes from five plots (they started with only one and 6,600 bottles in 2016), which means they have been able to increase volumes and, thankfully, also quality! The new plot is at 850 meters, so the grapes bring more freshness. These are always the last grapes they pick in Tenerife, even in an early harvest like 2020. The destemmed grapes were pressed and the juice let to settle for 12 to 24 hours and then fermented with indigenous yeasts in concrete without temperature control. Sixty-five percent of the wine matured in 2,500-liter oak foudres and the rest in neutral 350-liter barrels with lees. There is a smoky and spicy, flinty touch and a vibrant palate with a spark of acidity that makes the wine very long and tasty. This now plays in the major league. 2020 saw the earliest harvest ever for this wine. 11,000 bottles and 200 magnums were filled in December 2021.
About the Producer
Envínate (translates as "wine yourself") is the brainchild of 4 friends, winemakers Roberto Santana, Alfonso Torrente, Laura Ramos, and José Martínez. This gang of 4 formed back in 2005 while studying enology at the University of Miguel Hernandez in Alicante. Upon graduation, they formed a winemaking consultancy, which evolved into Envínate, a project that focuses on exploring distinctive parcels mainly in the Atlantic-inflected regions of Ribeira Sacra and the Canary Islands. Their collective aim is to make profoundly pure and authentic wines that express the terruño of each parcel in a clear and concise manner. To this end, no chemicals are used in any of the Envínate vineyards, all parcels are picked by hand, the grapes are foot-trodden, and the wines are fermented exclusively with wild yeasts, with a varying proportion of whole grape clusters included. For aging, the wines are raised in old barrels and concrete, and sulfur is only added at bottling, if needed. The results are some of the most exciting and honest wines being produced in Spain today.
