Description
Toro Albalá should need little introduction as the most significant producer of Pedro Ximénez in the world today. Under the guidance of Antonio Sánchez Romero, in 1970, Toro Albalá was the first Montilla producer to commercialise bottled, dessert-styled Pedro Ximénez. We believe the Bodega also remains the world’s only specialist in 100% vintage Pedro Ximénez. Toro Albalá works with the finest vineyard holdings in Montilla and today houses the oldest and most legendary stocks in the region.
Founded in 1844, Toro Albalá is based in Aguilar de la Frontera, right in the bullseye of DO Montilla-Moriles, the hilly Andalucían hinterland that forms ‘P.X. country’. The DO surrounds the two towns of Montilla in the north and Moriles in the south, both in the Province of Cordoba. In 1922 José Maria Toro Albalá purchased the Estate and made his mark by moving the whole Bodega into a former electrical plant. It was here that José Maria began to write the blueprint for the modern incarnation of Toro Albalá.
Toro Albalá’s old, bush-vine Pedro Ximénez is planted on the bleach-white, chalky albariza soils of the region. This soil type is not unique to Montilla-Moriles—Sherry’s other capitals of Sanlúcar de Barrameda and Jerez de la Frontera share the spoils. However, the combination of these light soils with altitude and the hot, dry climate—one that can sufficiently ripen Pedro Ximénez—set Montilla apart from its maritime-influenced sister regions.
This producer’s reputation lies in the balance of extraordinary sun-ripened richness and depth of old vine P.X., combined with a bright, savoury quality, which never allows the wines to veer into the cloying end of the spectrum. This is managed through strict quality control, from the old vines and great soils, all the way through their very long aging process.
The Bodega’s mindboggling vintage wines are black as pitch, indescribably complex and represent the most profound expressions of P.X. from Andalucía.
About this wine: Toro Albalá reserve select lots of their best vintage wines for later release under the Gran Reserva label. These rich and complex Pedro Ximénez wines are destined for a very long ageing in oak barrels. After filling and sealing, these barrels are left for decades in their single-vintage state. It’s during this slow maturation that the wines undertake their delicious, savoury, rancio transformation (through controlled exposure to oxygen) which brings a kind of nutty, iodine character that infinitely complexes the sweet, fruit cakey wine but also gives it added freshness.
Naturally, as the wines age, their flavour and texture concentrate, the colour darkens, and the mouthfeel thickens. Yet, at the same time, something more vibrant emerges as the acidity levels also rise. With more than 30 years in barrel, the 1988 is absolutely singing. The perfume is lifted and reminds one not only of raisins and liquorice but also of geranium and fresh grape seeds. The palate is thick and sweet yet so complex, with crushed raisin, ground coffee, bitter chocolate and roasted almond rancio notes. It perfumes the mouth for minutes after swallowing. Keeps forever once opened. Stunning value.
This is extraordinary nectar! Available in 375 ml bottles.
91-93 points, Luis Gutiérrez, The Wine Advocate “Tasting old sweet PX from Toro Albalá is like a roller coaster ride, which started with the 1988 Don PX Gran Reserva, what for them is their more commercial range, a wine that at close to 30 years of age is still unbottled. They compared it with the 1981 (which I never tasted), because it was a warm year with an exceptional harvest. It has 16.4% alcohol, 340 grams of residual sugar and mixes notes of youth, raisins, figs and dates with other aromas of a long aging like tar, graphite, chocolate and licorice.”
RRP $101 Our Special Price when you buy 3 or more of this wine $79.99 – 375 ml bottles.
