The wine was aromatic with a combination of black and red fruits present, it had traces of oak and the slightest hint of spices. It wasn’t very acidic or bold, but its rounded tannins were a beautiful thing.
WINE DETAILS:
- Grape: Prieto Picudo
- Alcohol: 14%
- Wine: Gamonal
- Vintage: 2016
- Winery: Bodegas Pardevalles
- PDO: León
- Location: Leon y Castilla, Spain
- Date: 6/17/21
- Distributor: Ballester Hermanos
Curious Synonyms: Prieto Picudo Tinto (no other synonym known)
Nerd Alert: León (known until 2019 as Tierra de León) is a comparatively new DO wine region in northwestern Spain. This is a rare, dark-skinned red wine grape variety with moderate tannins, retains good acidity and may respond well to a judicious use of oak. It grows best in difficult terrains, hot and dry being its preference as it has a high degree of drought resistance. The average growing area for the grape is around 5,000 ha. It’s origin is not clear with no literary references available but some believe it’s origin is from Portugal.
Personal Note: The first time I heard this grape’s name I laughed. In spanish it does sound a bit funny. Prieto is another way of saying black and picudo I guess I could translate maybe as pungent? Then again I’m not from Spain, so I would prefer someone locally to give us a better definition. Maybe a better frame of reference.
I tried this grape for the first time about six years back. I was a member of a wine group called Friends of Spanish Wines (The group is almost 30 years old) and I did a tasting of lesser known grapes (the founding steps of this blog). We tried many different wines from Spain and among them I included one from Pardevalles. I can’t tell you I remember from back then but I do remember from this time around.
The wine was aromatic with a combination of black and red fruits present, it had traces of oak and the slightest hint of spices. It wasn’t very acidic or bold, but its rounded tannins were a beautiful thing.
Sometimes I wonder why this grape doesn’t have a bigger reach. Then I remember some records estimate that over 600 grape varieties are planted throughout Spain, but 88% of the country’s wine production is focused on only 20 grape varieties. Here’s to hoping PP gets noticed more.🍷
Thoughts?
*Thank you to @ballesterhermanos for the wine and helping me getting closer to 500 grapes.
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*Sources for the wine facts are from: Wine Searcher, Wikipedia, Vivino, wine.com, and the wineries websites.
