Oxer Bastegieta, Tartalo, D.O.C. Rioja, red wine, 0.75l

Tartalo is an exceptional red wine from D.O.C. Rioja, produced by winemaker Oxer Bastegieta from the Rioja Alavesa area. The wine is made from a blend of Tempranillo, Viura and Graciano, and comes from the small historic Somo vineyard, covering just 0.7 hectares in the village of Elvillar. This vineyard was planted back in 1920, lies at an altitude of approximately 600 metres, and its soil consists of calcareous clay with a high limestone content, which gives the wine a pronounced minerality and structure.

The best grapes from the old vines are hand-harvested and carefully destemmed. Fermentation then follows in open 1000-litre vats and in 500-litre French oak barrels. Malolactic fermentation takes place in French oak barrels as well as in a 600-litre Stockinger barrel with a 47 mm wall thickness. The wine then ages for 12 months in oak barrels, which gives it complexity, elegance and an exceptional structure.

The wine's aromatics offer pronounced notes of thyme and delicate sweet spice nuances with hints of leather in the background. On the palate the wine is exceptionally structured and elegant. Pronounced, fine-grained and velvety tannins blend harmoniously with the taste of black cherries, blackberries and black plums, moving into a very long, chalky mineral finish. The wine has excellent potential for cellaring.

The recommended serving temperature is 14–16 °C. It pairs excellently with mature cheeses, red meats, game or ragù.

The name Tartalo comes from old Basque mythology, into which Oxer Bastegieta likes to escape and which he tries to express not only in his wines but also in his art. Tartalo is the name of an immensely powerful one-eyed Basque giant. The quote on the back label comes from the Norwegian painter Edvard Munch: "From my rotting body, flowers shall grow, and I am in them, and that is eternity."