Cantalapiedra Viticultores "Cantayano" Rueda Verdejo 2024

Wine Advocate : 92+ Points

(6/19/2025) The extremely young 2024 Cantayano was bottled less than one month before I tasted it. This was produced with Verdejo grapes from different plots in the village of La Seca, mostly in the lieu-dit of San Martín (now mentioned on the label) searching for the varietal profile without makeup, showing the climate and soils. The juice from the full clusters was let to settle and fermented at 20 degrees Celsius in stainless steel tanks, and only 10% of the volume spent seven months in French oak barrels while the rest was in stainless steel. It's from a cooler year with good yields, and the wines are more agile, with less weight and alcohol. It comes in at 13% alcohol, with a pH of 3.23 and 5.4 grams of acidity. It's primary and has herbal aromas and notes of freshly cut grass and fennel, with some medicinal/balsamic undertones and a gentle palate with a tender finish. The wines seem to be gaining in character every year, denoting a project on its way up. 50,000 bottles produced. It was bottled in April 2025.