Bodegas Farina Gran Colegiata Toro 2016

Don Manuel Fariña was among the first to bottle wines in Toro in the 1970's. He singlemindedly fought to establish the DO of Toro which was finally achieved in the 1980's. In 1987 Fariña was part of a wine competition in which one of his wines beat a Vega Sicilia from Ribera del Duero. This greatly helped the family get their wines known in Europe. Knowing that the origin of wine is the grapevine, and that this origin is what makes all the difference, at Fariña, all year round, looking after the grapevines is a paramount objective, a daily task of particular significance. Currently cultivating over 300 hectares of their own vineyards - some of which are over a hundred years old - the vines are tended with sustainable and organic methods. 

The trellised vines planted by the winery follow the double guyot system, which allows them to control the number of bunches per vine and increase the surface area of leaves exposed to the sun, thereby improving the efficiency of the photosynthesis process. The system also allows for limited growth of the grapes, which leads to their components being more concentrated and, ultimately, their quality too. 

GRAN COLEGIATA is the flagship wine of the winery and the wine that set the tone for Don Manuel Fariña’s vision of the elegance and longevity that wines of Toro can achieve. This wine is sourced from 100+ year old Tinta de Toro vines with original ungrafted roots that grow in sandy soil. Grapes are harvested for tannin maturity and brightness of fruit, macerations are short lasting less than 1 week with fermentation in stainless steel lasting about 2 weeks. The wine is then aged in mostly used fine grain Missouri Oak for 18 months. American Oak balances well with wines of Toro much like in Rioja.