90 Points - Parker
Notes
Kimera is a punchy 100% Garnacha aged in large ancient clay tinajas manchegas (amphoras). Hailing from 65 year-old vines growing on the foothills of San Martin de Unx in Navarra, northern Spain, a small Romanesque town with steep streets and stone structures overlooking the sloped and terraced vineyards of the Guerinda mountain range. This area of Navarra, just north-east of Rioja, is considered exceptional for Garnacha.
Kimera is a joint effort between Luis Moya Tortosa and Gonzalo Celayeta. Their goal was to truly display all the particular qualities of Garnacha grown in this extraordinary part of Navarra. The parcels are distributed on terraced plots between 300-600 meters altitude.
Initially the wine offers strong aromas of raspberry, dark cherry, forest berries such as mulberries and blueberries, followed by hints of mountain herbs such as rosemary and thyme. On the palate the wine is full, crisp, with an initial berry blast that finishes with a touch of earthiness. It's a sipping wine that does well with a hearty meal.
According to Robert Parker's The Wine Advocate magazine LMT Wines is considered "one of the very exciting new projects in Navarra". Navarra is the region sandwiched between La Rioja, Basque Country, Aragon, and the southern border of France. Internationally, it's best known for the Fiestas de San Fermín which occur every year in the capital of Pamplona.
L, M , and T are quite simply the initials of the excellent winemaker behind this project, Luis Moya Tortosa.
Luis likes to call himself a "Nomadic Winemaker" since, as of yet, he doesn't own any vineyard. Instead, he moves through the land, finding and reviving old vineyards in Navarra, predominantly of Garnacha, and in the area of Rioja bordering Navarra, where he also works with the Graciano variety. He rents the spaces in which he makes his nomadic wines.
For now, Luis works with 5 hectares of very old vineyards in various areas, producing about 12,000 bottles of wine a year, some of them together with his good friend and winemaker, Gonzalo Celayeta.
Facts
Annual Production: 6000 bottles (The club has access to 150 annually)
Type: Tinto (Red)
Body: Full
Palate: Dry
Finish: fruity, earthy and intense
Grape Variety: 100% Garnacha
Viticulture / Farming: Certified Organic Farming - Terroir Driven
ABV%: 14.4
Ageing: on its lees for 10 months in large used amphoras
Winemaker: Luis Moya Tortosa & Gonzalo Celayeta
Bodega: LMT Wines
Region: San Martin de Unx, Navarra
Designation of Origin: DO Navarra
Micro-Climate: Continental - Mediterranean
Elevation: 550 meters above sea level
Age of Vines: 35-65 years old
Soil: clay and limestone
Tips
- Best to keep this wine for a few years (up to 10)
- Decant for 30 minutes 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.
- Ideally served just below room temperature
Terroir
More info coming soon.
Vinification
The grapes are manually harvested in small crates. Fermentation happens spontaneously, in large stainless tanks, driven by the grape's natural yeasts and bacteria.
The wine is then aged for 12 months in very large antique clay tinajas (amphoras).
Low intervention, no clarification or filtration, this is a pure wine “without any makeup” as Luis likes to say.
Winemaker
Luis Moya Tortosa was born in Burlada, a municipality in the outskirts of Pamplona, Navarra's capital.
Right after Luis graduated as Technical Agricultural Engineer, he started to manage and run a bar in Burlada.
As Luis says, he was the one that drank the most wine in that bar, and a large variety of wines, not only from Navarra. This is when he really started to fall in love with the culture of wine.
He began working in the Cooperative Winery of Aibar, a municipality east of Pamplona.
Since he was already fully involved in wine culture he decided to make it official. He enrolled in the Masters of Oenology, Viticulture and Marketing at the Polytechnic University of Madrid (UPM).
After achieving his Master's degree, he spent a few years working in research and helping in the production of Navarra's Institutional Wine at the Institute of Oenology and Viticulture (EVENA).
Whilst working at EVENA, he graduated in Oenology at the University of La Rioja, and he completed his studies achieving Level 3 at the Wine and Spirits Education Trust (WSET 3).
Then, working as an oenologist at the "Vitivinícola de Cárcar" he began producing his first wine, which was Masusta in 2012.
In Luis' own words translated from Spanish "My passion for the world of wine not only pushes me to produce different wines but also gives me the opportunity to travel to areas that I haven't yet explored and discover terroirs from which I can learn and draw inspiration. My world circles around Navarra and Rioja; in Navarra the Garnachas give me all my joy, and in Rioja the innumerable variety of different terroirs never cease to amaze me."
Ratings & Reviews
90 Points - Luis Gutiérrez Santo Domingo (Wine Advocate, Robert Parker)
Part of the project together with winemaker Gonzalo Celayeta that also produced some ancestral sparkling wines, the 2017 Kimera is pure Garnacha from two vineyards in the village of San Martín de Unx. It fermented with indigenous yeasts in stainless steel and matured with the lees in an ancient earthenware 4,500-liter tinaja (amphora) for 10 months. 2017 was a ripe year, and the profile of the wine is more Mediterranean, revealing aromas of thyme and rosemary intermixed with the berry and floral notes of the variety. The palate is medium to full-bodied, with fine, chalky tannins and a long, tasty finish. 6,000 bottles produced. It was bottled in April 2019.
