Suertes del Marqués Valle de la Orotava 'Edición 2' Tinto 2023

Suertes del Marqués has been leading Tenerife's vinous renaissance for the past two decades.

Buying up vineyards and selling most of his crop to local domaines in 1986, Francisco García Lima only started producing wine commercially from 2006. As Francisco introduced organic, low-interventionist philosophies and his son Jonatan took over the 9ha estate in 2016, Suertes del Marqués is now at the epicentre of Tenerife fine wine.

Jonatan farms 9ha of indigenous old-vine varieties – some more than 200 years old – on volcanic clay and sand soils in the steep Orotova Valley, an appellation where cloud cover moderates temperatures by some 10°C compared to the rest of the island. Trained with a rare technique called cordón trenzado, the long vine canes are painstakingly tied back to their sinewy roots after pruning, then propped off the floor with poles.

While Jonatan’s Listán Blancos have captured the attention of drinkers with their mouth-watering acidity and signature smokiness, his brilliant-value reds made largely from Listán Negro and Tintilla (Garnacha) continue to fly under the radar. Fresh and peppery with round, supple tannins, they resonate with volcanic minerality.
 
The red wine jewel in the crown – ‘Edición 1’ – comprises the very best barrel of Listán Negro from ‘El Ciruelo,’ a vineyard at 500m elevation with a northern exposure. Fermented with 50% whole clusters using native yeasts and aged in old oak for 11 months, it marries pure red fruit and delicate floral aromatics with smoky minerality. Just 630 bottles were produced.

95+ Points, Wine Advocate