Vinos de Parcelas, by Pago Aylés

A further commitment to sustainable agriculture, organic farming and low intervention winemaking by Pago Aylés.

After many years of practicing sustainable agriculture, Pago Aylés decided in 2016 to convert to 100% organic agriculture, and they have been seeing a different evolution in the “terroir” of the Finca that has given an added complexity in the soils, being able to translate it into different wines in style from those made in 2010. Soil conservation and improvement is at the heart of the strategy.

This precision viticulture has made them further delineate the difference between the different soils of the farm and has allowed to put into practice a different elaboration for each area. In this significant evolution, they have noticed two distinct plots in the Pago classified vines, Cuesta del Herrero and Senda de Leñadores, that eventually became elaborated on their own to give rise to the Vinos de Parcelas.

The team’s efforts have focused on several levels. Initially, efforts were centered on the consolidation of the cover crop to help preserve the physical characteristics of the soil, reduce its compaction and prevent erosion. In a climate like the one predominant at Pago Aylés, rainfalls are scarce, but when it rains, it pours! During those storms, the loss of soil is very important and can reach thousands of cubic meters a year. The introduction of green covers reduces the erosive impact of rain and wind.

They introduced complexity to the ecosystem by promoting cover crops, and by expanding the diversity of plant species. This directly favors a greater complexity in populations of insects, small vertebrates and birds, without neglecting the increase in life in the soil. Soil fungi and bacteria grow in populations, creating a more complex and robust ecosystem.

Thanks to a dry climate, pest and disease management is very simple, generating zero impact on their environment. Pest control is carried out using the technique of sexual confusion by pheromones (pheromone-mediated mating disruption), to only control their main pest, the cluster moth (Lobesia botrana).

It was in 2017 when all these practices and changes resulted in a new wine from the Senda de Leñadores area, Then, as they completed this first stage of the process in 2018, it gave rise to the Cuesta del Herrero wine.

The team at Pago Aylés continues this reconversion process to finalize their Organic certification in 2020.

 

CUESTA DEL HERRERO

Appellation: Vino de Pago
Grapes: Garnacha, Tempranillo, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon
Age of vines: more than 25 years old
Altitude: 650 m.a.s.l.
Soil: The soils of the Cuesta del Herrero plot have a higher calcium component, are mostly sandy and with some boulders.
Climate: Continental Extreme

Viticulture/ Vinification:
By having a very similar maturation cycle, Merlot and Tempranillo ferment together. The same occurs later with Garnacha and Cabernet Sauvignon. Alcoholic fermentation occurs at a controlled temperature and with indigenous yeasts. The malolactic fermentation takes place in second-year French oak barrels, where the wine remains until completing five months of aging.

Vintage 2020 (available; cases of 6)
50% Tempranillo, 30% Garnacha, 12% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Sauvignon
Alcohol: 14.0%; RS 1.7 g/L; TA 5.1 g/L; Free SO2 18 mg/L

Leñadores SENDA DE LEÑADORES

Appellation: Vino de Pago
Grapes: Garnacha, Tempranillo, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon
Age of vines: more than 25 years old
Altitude: 650 m.a.s.l.
Soil: Chalk and Clay. The Senda de Leñadores plot is one of the driest and most clay-bearing parts of the estate.
Climate: Continental Extreme

Viticulture/ Vinification
After experience in previous years, they have verified that a higher production demonstrates a higher quality by having a better leaf balance and a slower maturation. Night harvest to take advantage of the thermal jump, so that the grapes enter the cellar in optimal conditions. Separate alcoholic fermentation at controlled temperature and with indigenous yeasts. The wine undergoes malolactic fermentation in second-year French 225 litre barrels followed by ageing for 10 months.

Vintage 2020 (cases of 6)
55% Garnacha, 30% Tempranillo, 10% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Sauvignon

Alcohol: 14.5%; RS 1.9 g/L; TA 5.6 g/L; Free SO2 59 mg/L

 

Reviews of the Vinos de Parcelas

CUESTA DEL HERRERO

Vintage 2020

97/100 & Best in Show — 2021 Decanter World Wine Awards
There is yet more impressive Iberian Best In Show value from this Pago wine, the first in Aragon: Ayles, sited near to Zaragoza. It’s a young blend of Garnacha and Tempranillo with a little Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon, and stood out for successive panels of judges thanks to its generosity, poise and charm. Dark black-red in colour, its sweet, pure black-cherry and plum fruits waft alluringly from the glass. The concentration is remarkable for this price bracket, and the combination of indigenous varieties with a seasoning of Bordeaux favourites brings the wine a complexity which almost comes as a surprise after its aromatic sweetness. Its a wine from evidently propitious vineyards — about which we will surely hear more in future.

Cuesta Del Herrero 2020 (97 puntos)
Vintage 2018

International Wine Competition (IWC) 95/100 points
“Light and elegant, ripe spicy fruit, juicy acidity, rich and textured palate, prunes and damson, chalky tannins. Will benefit from aging.”
– Annette Scarfe, MW

Wine in Black rating: 95 Points
Only 18 wineries are allowed to adorn themselves with the quality level Vino de Pago – the Spanish equivalent to the French Grand Cru classification. Climate, soil, age of the vines and the fact that the wines must reflect the terroir character in perfection are just a few of the strict criteria. So we’re talking about the crème de la crème of Spanish winegrowing. One of these wineries is Pago Aylés. Although it was only founded in 1994, a wine with this legendary status was already vinified in 2010. And that caused a sensation at the time, because it was the very first Pago young wine in the world, which then took it by storm. It was followed by the first Pago-Rosé, which cemented the name Pago Aylés permanently in the Olympus of Spanish winegrowing.

But the Pago Aylés crew does not rest on all these laurels. On the contrary! Their latest Pago hit is the ‘Cuesta del Herrero’, which was vinified for the first time with the 2018 vintage and is now coming onto the market. ‘Cuesta del Herrero’ means ‘slope of the arbitration’. A name that you can see directly from the wine – thanks to the look. Because on the one hand the capsule is held in a metal look, on the other hand the oblique label should symbolize the slope. Here, attention was paid to the smallest detail. All of this is of no use if the quality is not right. In this case, you can be safe. Because while most new wines have received little attention on the market for the first few years, the first edition of the ‘Cuesta del Herrero’ at the International Wine Challenge 95 points! This achievement is only topped by the fabulously low price with which this exceptional wine comes along!

 

SENDA DE LEÑADORES

Vintage 2017
Bacchus 2020 Wine International Competition: Bacchus de Oro