Canopy

Congo

$86.23 CAD/btl $258.70 CAD/case $344.90 CAD/case Retail

Notes

Canopy’s cream of the crop! Congo is only made in the most exceptional vintages from the best grape bunches; carefully selected by hand in the early hours of the morning. The Congo vineyard is a mature 60-year-old plot of Garnacha barely a hectare in size, on the southern foothills of the Sierra de Gredos at 750 metres above sea level.  

During the micro vinification process, delicate care is taken so that the freshness of the grapes and the minerality remain intact, always staying true to their philosophy of minimal intervention.

Notes of red fruit, strawberries, blueberries and plum. Floral aromas of violets together with hints of chocolate and hazelnut. Really aromatic and opens up in the glass.

 On the palate, it’s savoury and full-bodied with ripe tannins that pay homage to the old vines and enhance the wine. The finish is pleasant, long and persistent.

Congo takes its name from the Spanish idiom, “valer un Congo” akin to “costing an arm and a leg” which is what it takes to create a wine of this calibre.

Facts

Annual Production: 2,450 bottles (The club has access to 200 annually)
Type: 
Tinto (Red)
Body: 
Full
Palate:  Dry
Finish: 
Smooth
Grape Variety:
 100% Garnacha (the best bunches from the best vines)
Viticulture / Farming: Organic Farming - Terroir Driven
ABV%: 14.5
Ageing:  17 months in French oak barrels
Winemakers:  Alfonso Chacón, Belarmino Fernández & Lorena Díaz
Bodega: Canopy
Region: El Real de San Vicente, Sierra de Gredos, Toledo, Castilla-la Mancha
Designation of Origin (DOP):  Méntrida
Micro-Climate: Continental - hot and dry summers and cool/mild in the winters
Elevation: 750 meters above sea level
Age of Vines: 65 years old
Soil: Granite & Silica

Tips

  • Drink now or keep for up to 8 years
  • decant before serving
  • Pairs with Tapas, Manchego or any cheese (cow, goat or sheep), Ibérico ham, Paté or any Spreads, Poultry, Pasta or Pizza, Legumes or Meat, typical Spanish dishes, all Mediterranean and Asian rice-based dishes spiced but not too hot.
  • serve at room temperature

Terroir

The Sierra de San Vicente nestled amidst the Tiétar (tributary of the Tagus) and the Tajo (Tagus) valleys, is located north of the Méntrida Designation of Origin and is under the influence of the Sierra de Gredos. It runs through an altitude of 750 meters above sea level.
This favourable microclimate can be felt at night when temperatures drop and mountain aromas waft through the old Garnacha vineyards which turn them into veritable gardens perfectly suited to a harsh granitic and demanding land.

Vinification

The wine is made using small-capacity tanks (1500 L ). As soon as the grapes arrive at the winery, pre-fermentation & cold maceration is carried out and then, gentle crushing is done for 22 days until the alcoholic fermentation is complete.



Winemakers

Canopy was founded by Alfonso Chacón and Belarmino Fernández with the vision of creating organic, low-intervention wines that show nuance and character. Their wines have gained international praise for their purity and quality, as the famed Michel Bettane said in Shanghai, they represent the “renaissance of wines in Spain”. 

Among the top wineries producing organic wines and recuperating ancestral Garnachas located at a high altitude in the beautiful "Sierra de Gredos” not far from Madrid. 

The vision of these oenologists, interested in what the terroir and the grape represent, has placed their wines at the same level as the best low-intervention French wines, perfectly defined by the term “vin de garage”. 

Their wines derive their authenticity straight from the land, by selecting the best vines, caring for them sustainably, clearly identifying each plot with only one or two barrels, and blending them in the bottle to create something out of this world.

Click here to read more about the winery on their website.


Ratings & Reviews

93 Points - Robert Parker (The Wine Advocate)
Luis Gutiérrez (Robert Parker reviewer for Spain) notes about this wine:
Made with a selection of grapes from the village of El Real de San Vicente.  It fermented with stems after a 10-day maceration.  It matured in 500 and 600-litre oak barrels until it was bottled in January 2017.
This is a wine they have only produced twice so far, in 2009 and 2015, and when they don't bottle it separately, it goes into the blend of Tres Patas.
They select the best two bunches from each plant (always from the same vineyard), so it's very labour intensive.
This shows the high ripeness of a very warm year (one of the warmest) with notes of candied fruit and an earthy and somewhat rustic nose.
It has a full body, with juicy fruit and abundant, fine tannins. This is evolving quite slowly in the bottle.

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