4 Monos "GR-10 Tinto" Madrid, Spain 2022

FROM JOSE PASTOR:

THE WINE: 100% Grenache. GR-10 Tinto is the team's Vino de Sierra or "villages level" red from several parcels in Cadalso de los Vidrios, San Martín de Valdeiglesias & Cenicientos. The grapes are typically cold macerated 50% whole cluster and 50% de-stemmed, wild yeast fermented for 30-40 days, then raised in 300, 400 and 500 liter used barrels for 9 months.

THE PRODUCER: 4 Monos (4 Monkeys) is a project started in 2010 by 4 wine savvy friends - Javier García, Laura Robles, David Velasco, and David Moreno – in the Sierra de Gredos mountains, west of Madrid. They work 5 hectares of their own, as well as 5ha with other growers, all located in and around the villages of San Martín de Valdeiglesias, Cadalso de los Vidrios, and Cenicientos. Their mission is to capture the purity of the local old vine Albillo and Garnacha grapes and the granitic soils of the area by utilizing organic viticulture and natural winemaking methods. Vinos de Madrid is an appellation that encompasses a broad area within 3 provinces surrounding the city of Madrid. The climate is continental with a bit more rainfall than the rest of central Spain. The most prized area for serious winegrowing is called San Martín de Valdeiglesias. Here, there are gently rolling hills of green scrub brush and vines planted on a shallow topsoil of sand over a base of granite. The elevation is quite high, starting at 650 meters, and going up to well over a thousand meters.