Pavina, Pinot Noir Rosé, Spain (bottle price £16)
Alta Pavina exists as a complete anomaly in central Spain. Their estate vineyard is located in a particularly cold section of Ribera del Duero at over 3000ft of elevation and surprisingly is planted primarily to Pinot Noir.
This bottling, crafted using 100% Pinot Noir sourced from this estate vineyard and vinified as a rosé, is an exceptional achievement for a region that is typically thought to be extremely hot and arid.
This wine is fresh and balanced, combining bright and expansive fruit with intense driving mineral tones. It is more broad-shouldered than most old-world Pinot-based rosé yet it is much more mineral than most new world equivalents.
This is a really interesting and delicious wine that proves there is an exception to every rule.