Tintilla de Rota 2009 15%, Gonzalez Byass

Appearance
Dense black through cherry/ruby to ruby rim, little age apparent, quite viscous.
Nose
Well ripened black fruits with noticeable hints of honey and prunes, hints of minerality along with a touch of almost cedary French oak, textured, rich and obviously sweet but firm and serious, still young but complexity beginning to show as it develops.
Palate
Quite full bodied, rich honeyed sweetness, the asoleo of the grapes apparent, some tannin present but not at all aggressive, just adding to the lovely texture, bramble/mulberry/plummy fruit, quite low acidity yet has a certain tang and good length given low acidity. Very moreish. Delicious.
Comments
One of very few Tintillas available. They are all hard to come by, though one or two minor bodegas in the Rota area still make them for local consumption. Lustau make one apparently, though I've never seen it. This one is from GB's Finca Moncloa estate near Arcos and is (50cl) bottle No. 23 of 690. The grapes were sunned for 60 hours on esparto mats, followed by 8 days fermenting with the skins, then 3 months settling in tank and 18 months in French oak barrels. Production strictly followed the methods outlined by Manuel Maria Gonzalez, and this is an exact reproduction of the wine supplied to Her Majesty Queen Isabel II in the XIX century. I feel this wine could catch on.
Price
40 euros for 50cl bottle at Gonzalez Byass shop in Jerez. Very expensive, but it is delicious.