With a sweet and captivating nose, the 2012 Finca la Emperatriz Garnacha Cepas Viejas is sourced from the Rioja Alta subzone (not the classical Garnacha place), from the only old-vine Garnacha plot they have in the estate. It is fermented in open-top, stainless-steel vats with indigenous yeasts after 4-5 days of pre-fermentative maceration and matured in 500-liter oak barrels for 11 months. It has a sweet, red fruit nose with toasty notes, ripe without excess, with some floral tones. The palate is medium-bodied with some fine tannins and a slightly bitter finish that makes me think the wine needs a little bit more time in bottle to blossom fully, as I think it has what it requires. 6,975 bottles produced.