Oxer Bastegieta Kalamity 2022/2023

The Wine Advocate: The 2022 Kalamity, a blend of 48% Tempranillo, 48% Garnacha and 2% each of Viura and Garnacha Blanca, was again my favourite of the range. The wine comes from old vines on white limestone soils with sand, resulting in elegant and fine-grained wines with fine-grained tannins. There is purity, precision and very clean, focused, balanced and intense aromas and flavours. It is perfumed and eye-catching, but also a bit shy, even if it seems like a contradiction, subtle and full of 'nuances'. Bravo! 3,200 bottles and 300 magnums were produced. It was bottled in September 2023. (Luis Gutiérrez)

The Wine Advocate: The 2023 Kalamity red is stunning, in line with the wine produced in 2021. This is a wine first produced in 2014 from a field blend of Tempranillo, Garnacha, Viura and Garnacha Blanca from very old vines in Elvillar, Laguardia and Camprovín, harvested relatively early to avoid excess alcohol and preserve acidity. The grapes were partially destemmed, partially crushed and partially whole-cluster fermented in stainless steel with indigenous yeasts. The wine was aged in 600-litre oak barrels for 10 months.

Like most 2023s, it has a contained ripeness and low alcohol content (13.5%), as well as a balanced pH of 3.5. Tartalo has been getting closer, but I still believe this is the most complex, sophisticated and complete of the reds from here, fragrant and elegant. Still young, it is already very harmonious, with a medium-bodied palate, extremely fine tannins and exceptional balance. This may well be the best Kalamity to date. It is already accessible even at this young stage, but it should also evolve and improve even more with time in the bottle. 3,200 bottles were bottled in September 2024. (Luis Gutiérrez)