Comando G - El Tamboril Navatalgordo Blanco 2023

A short distance from Madrid, the rugged, weathered peaks of the Sierra de Gredos serve as a refreshingly cool retreat from the heat and bustle of the capital. Ancient hilltop towns and cottages dot the tortured landscape of alpine meadows, tumbled boulders, and thick scrub brush. Clustered around this rugged range are three DOs: Cebreros, Mentrida, and Viños de Madrid. Once known for producing reliably inexpensive and straightforward country wines to slake the capital’s thirst, the rediscovery and revitalization of vineyards high up in the Sierra de Gredos has revolutionized and redefined winemaking in this region. These nearly abandoned, once obscure, and seemingly inauspicious vines possessed a hidden expression of Garnacha where the pale color belies the depth and intensity of the fruit and terruño expression. Rather than the explosive and expansive character typical of Garnacha, they revealed wines that turned this energy inward, creating a sense of thrilling weightlessness and energy that crackles with red fruit and minerality. Among the pioneers recovering these vineyards were Dani Landi and Fernando Garcia.

Dani & Fer, friends since childhood, returned home to the Sierra de Gredos after completing their education in enology: Daniel at his family’s estate, Bodegas Jimenez-Landi, and Fernando at Bodega Marañones. Drawn to the mountains and rumors of small, nearly inaccessible vineyard plots located high in the Sierra de Gredos, over time, they began purchasing and leasing the best sites they could find before going out on their own in 2008 with the founding of Comando G. Along with the pioneers of the Priorat, Daniel and Fernando are redefining what was previously viewed as a workhorse variety, Garnacha, into something that can rival the elegance and finesse of Pinot in Burgundy or Syrah in the northern Rhône. Their persistence in the belief of Garnacha and the Gredos and their tireless efforts have made them famous worldwide.

The vineyards that Daniel and Fernando have assembled for Comando G are all farmed manually and biodynamically. The vines range from 50 to 80 years old and are planted on sandy soils weathered from granite, slate, and quartz. A combination of high altitude, freely draining soils, and a mild and relatively humid micro-climate – for central Spain – guarantees a long growing season and a modest alcohol level in the finished wines. The resultant wines are startlingly pale, extraordinarily aromatic, and intensely flavorful. Each site is harvested by hand, spontaneously fermented in open-top French oak casks, and then aged in concrete, foudre, demi-muids, or amphorae.

The development of Comando G was an organic process dictated by the conditions of each new parcel when it was added. Some, like Tumba del Rey Moro, Las Iruelas, and Rumbo al Norte, were clear Grand Cru sites from the first vintage, while others took time to recover and reveal their nature and character. Over time, Comando G coalesced around four villages in DO Cebreros – Rozas, Navatalgordo, Villanueva, and El Tiemblo. Vineyards outside these villages have either been sold or leased to friends, as with Dani’s vineyards, which are now part of Viticola Mentridana. Each village is represented by a village wine and 1er or Grand Cru designations as warranted. But despite their internal hierarchy, everything leaving their cellar is singular and unique in its expression of Garnacha de Gredos, which, at the end of the day, are some of the finest wines made anywhere in the world.

From a tiny vineyard of 0.2 hectares of mixed Garnacha Blanca and Garnacha Gris planted on sandy quartz and sandstone, El Tamboril is a remarkable example of how Spain has begun to redefine itself as capable of producing white wines that rival those of Germany and Burgundy. Hand-harvested and whole cluster pressed directly into a small oak vat for a natural yeast fermentation followed by 14 months in a demijohn. 400-800 bottles made each vintage.

"The white 2023 El Tamboril is from full clusters that were pressed (foot trodden), then the juice was let to settle and put to ferment in a wine globe glass sphere, where it matured without any rackings until bottling. It went through partial malolactic, but the whole process was very slow. This 2023 took almost one year to finish fermenting. Yields were very low, and the juice was concentrated and ripe. It comes in at 14% alcohol and has integrated acidity. It has a floral nose, hints of cookie dough, a little yeasty, with notes of chamomile and a bitter twist in the finish. What is distinct here is the austerity in the palate, the texture, which is akin to liquid granite. The wine is more Northern Rhône-ish this year. 249 bottles were filled in April 2025. It's an almost academic wine, because it's impossible to find in the market. Production will grow in 2025." - 96 Points, Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

Producer: Comando G

Country: Spain

Region: Castilla y León

Varietal: Grenache Blanc, Grenache Gris

Appellation: Tierra de Castilla y León

Vintage: 2023

Size: 750ml