The 2008 Autor was sourced from ungrafted vines over 100 years of age with the wine aged for 18 months in new French oak. A glass-coating opaque purple color, it gives up a brooding bouquet of sandalwood, tar, tapenade, lilacs, blackberry, and truffle. In the glass, this dense effort is an infant in its development with a minimum of another 8-10 years of cellaring required. Well proportioned despite its size, it will be loved by those who value unmitigated power. For those seeking finesse, look elsewhere. Bodegas Tardencuba is a 33 acre estate whose Tinta de Toro vines are all fermented with native yeasts and bottled without fining or filtration.Importer: F.L. Navarro, The Artisan Collection, Brooklyn, NY; Tel. (718) 596-0722

The 2007 Tardencuba Autor was sourced from 100+-year-old vines and aged for 18 months in new French oak. It exhibits a superb aromatic array of pain grille, mineral, spice box, floral notes, and wild blackberry. Layered, extracted, complex, and still tightly wound, this impressive effort demands cellaring. Give it 8-10 years of additional bottle age and drink it from 2015 to 2030. Both Tardencuba wines were sourced from dry-farmed ungrafted 70- to 100-year-old Tinta de Toto vines and fermented with native yeasts before bottling without fining or filtration.Importer: The Artisan Collection, New York, NY; tel. (212) 608-0072

Bodegas Tardencuba owns 15 hectares of Tinta de Toro (Tempranillo) in the southwest of Zamora. The top wines are made from ungrafted centennial vines from a sandy region in which phylloxera never took hold. This wine was fermented with native yeasts and bottled without fining or filtration. The 2006 Autor was produced from 100+-year-old ungrafted vines and aged for 18 months in new French oak. The aromatics are already complex, with aromas of pain grille, mineral, espresso, blueberry, and blackberry liqueur. Full-bodied and structured, with 6-8 years of cellaring potential, this layered, spicy wine has a long, pure finish. Drink it through 2025. Importer: F.L. Navarro, Quality Wines of Spain, New York, NY; tel. (212) 842-8181