The 2011 El Puntido is pure Tempranillo from a single vineyard (their highest-altitude vineyard) in the village of Páganos in the Rioja Alavesa. The fermentation is traditional with destemmed grapes in stainless steel with yeasts from the vineyard. The wine matured in new French oak barrels for 16 months. The nose is quite smoky, ripe and showy with some hints of iodine (call it mineral if you want). There is a specific strain of non-Saccharomyces yeasts in El Puntido vineyard (also present in La Nieta) that lowers the pH and gives the wines an extra dimension of freshness that compensates the early, warm growing season. This Puntido needs some more time to render its tannins in bottle. 48,000 bottles produced.