2023 Colección de Toneles Centenarios Lo de Pepitín
| Type of Wine | |
|---|---|
| Country | Spain |
| Region | |
| Winery | |
| Vintage | 2023 |
| Grape | , , |
| Content (Alc) | 0.75 ltr (13.5%) |
| Drink window | 2025 - 2030 |
In stock
24 items available
Description
The company “Colección de Toneles Centenarios” was born from an extraordinary treasure: the barrel room of the Ferrero wineries, an old wine producing winery in Alicante, located in the town of Cañada, Alicante. From the historic vineyards of the house, planted in the 60s, with a fine sandy soil, just outside the town of Canyada in Alicante, comes here an extraordinary glass of red wine namely the Lo de Pepitín. The winery produces gems one by one at a great price and the wines are embraced by Robert Parker because these are not average, but wines from indigenous grapes that you often find nowhere else in very small quantities (often only a few hundred bottles).
The Lo de Pepitín is a blend of
- Monastrell (80%) – The main grape, known for its deep colour and spicy aromas.
- Giró (14%) – A native grape from Valencia, which adds elegance and finesse.
- Arcos (3%) – A rare, local variety that brings freshness and spiciness.
- Bobal (3%) – Gives structure and a light earthy touch to the blend.
The fermentation of the grapes for Lo de Pepitín takes place with indigenous yeasts (natural yeasts that occur naturally on the grapes) in open stainless steel tanks. 40% of the grapes are fermented in whole bunches, which gives extra structure and freshness to the wine. The wine is aged for 8 months, during which:
- 50% is matured in 500-litre French oak barrels (adds subtle wood notes and complexity).
- 50% matures in clay amphorae from Villarrobledo (provides a pure and mineral expression of the grape).
The wine is made with minimal intervention, which means that it is made as naturally as possible, without unnecessary additives or manipulations. The vineyards are located in Canyada, Alicante and the vines were planted in 1976, which ensures low yields and a high concentration in the grapes. The vineyard is located on a loamy sandy-clay soil with a striking red color and a high content of active limestone (which provides minerality and freshness to the wine).
The vines are grown as bush vines, which provides natural protection against heat and drought. The cultivation is dry farming, without irrigation, which allows the roots to grow deep into the ground and add complexity to the wine. After sixty years, the roots can be as deep as 20 meters.
The 2023 Lo de Pepitín has developed beautifully in a short time with a surprising complexity, freshness and harmony.
Tasting notes
Color: Bright ruby red
Nose: Floral notes, red fruit and aromatic herbs
Taste: Medium body, fine tannins, fresh and elegant
Specifications
| Type of Wine | Red |
|---|---|
| Country | Spain |
| Region | Alicante |
| Winery | Colección de Toneles Centenarios |
| Grape | Bobal, Monastrell, Mourvedre |
| Biological certified | No |
| Natural wine | No |
| Vegan | No |
| Vintage | 2023 |
| Drinking as of | 2025 |
| Drinking till | 2030 |
| Alcohol % | 13.5 |
| Alcohol free/low | No |
| Content | 0.75 ltr |
| Oak aging | Yes |
| Sparkling | No |
| Dessert wine | No |
| Closure | Cork |
| Parker rating | 93 |
| Tasting Profiles | Aards, Boers, Donker fruit, Droog, Fruitig |
| Drink moments | Barbecue, Borrelen, Cadeau!, Met vrienden, Voor alledag |
Professional Reviews
Parker
The Wine Advocate
RP 92+
Reviewed by:
Luis Gutiérrez
Release Price:
$45
Drink Date:
2025 - 2029
Once again, I tasted the bright ruby-red 2023 Lo de Pepitín, which felt very young when I tasted it last year. It has developed more complexity and comes through as fresh and harmonious, with floral notes, hints of red fruit and aromatic herbs. It has a medium-bodied palate and fine tannins and is fresh and elegant.
Colección de Toneles Centenarios keeps adding table wines to their portfolio—two whites this time—and bottling small quantities of old Fondillón. They are in the process of getting biodynamic certification, and the vineyards have been organic since 2011; but for now, the wines don't carry any certification. It's a very interesting project with focus and a limited production of around 45,000 bottles per year, including 18,000 bottles of vermouth.
Published: Jan 09, 2025
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The Colección de Toneles Centenarios company was born from an extraordinary treasure: the barrel room of the Ferrero wineries, an old wine producing winery in Alicante, located in the city of Cañada, Alicante. There they found 25 old barrels that have been forgotten for more than 60 years. The barrels contained extremely old and also extremely expensive wines.
The family still has 25 hectares of vineyards, from which they resume the production of wines destined to produce Fondillón. Fondillon is a completely separate category of wine and is a sweet, undistilled wine made from extra ripe Monastrell grapes that are harvested later than normal, before being pressed, fermented with the skins and then aged in oak for at least ten years barrels. It is located in between a sherry and a port, but an important element is that the wine is not fortified, so it consists purely of the grapes.
The Fondillón comes from the Alicante region and has thus naturally reached its high alcohol content and belongs to one of the most important historical wines in Europe. It should only be made with 100% Monastrell grape from Alicante. The high natural alcohol value is achieved by ripening the grapes on the vine itself, which promotes both the highest levels of aromas and flavors of the Monastrell grape, produced by the solera system during the fermentation and aging process. Through this system, one portion of each barrel is tapped into the next when bottled, filling the decay with aged wine from the finest selection of Monastrell grape, Alicante's main variety. The production and aging is done with all the care and attention that is required by a noble wine.
The Fondillón was born in the former orchard of the city of Alicante and later spread to the neighboring area of Vinalopó where it currently produces wines. It was one of the most prestigious wines in the world until the phylloxera crisis and industrialization led to the disappearance of many wineries. Fortunately, this wine is coming back all the way and there are a number of high-quality wine companies that supply this beautiful wine, with Colección de Toneles Centenarios being very much at the top. Especially with their Fondillón Luis XIV of more than 60 years old, but also the 25-year-old version are very beautiful with very high international ratings. They are pricy wines, especially given the very long maturation, but actually only a fraction compared to some Sauternes.
The 4 characteristics of Fondillón:
- Denomination of Origin Alicante.Monastrell grape
- Minimum of 10 years of aging and aging in oak barrels
- Minimum of 16º or natural alcohol, never added alcohol
Since the grapes remain on the bushes to dry in (as is done for example in Puglia at Primitvo and is called appassimento there, but is also in principle the same as an Amarone) it also has to cooperate again. When autumn sets in early and the rains start, the grape cannot build up the sugars to create the minimum natural 16% alcohol, so these wines can always be made in the good years, and every year again poses the question whether it will work. The final wine is always a Non Vintage and the barrels therefore contain the blend of various years.
The company “Colección de Toneles Centenarios” was born from an extraordinary treasure: the barrel room of the Ferrero wineries, an old wine producing winery in Alicante, located in the town of Cañada, Alicante. From the historic vineyards of the house, planted in the 60s, with a fine sandy soil, just outside the town of Canyada in Alicante, comes here an extraordinary glass of red wine namely the Lo de Pepitín. The winery produces gems one by one at a great price and the wines are embraced by Robert Parker because these are not average, but wines from indigenous grapes that you often find nowhere else in very small quantities (often only a few hundred bottles).
The Lo de Pepitín is a blend of
- Monastrell (80%) – The main grape, known for its deep colour and spicy aromas.
- Giró (14%) – A native grape from Valencia, which adds elegance and finesse.
- Arcos (3%) – A rare, local variety that brings freshness and spiciness.
- Bobal (3%) – Gives structure and a light earthy touch to the blend.
The fermentation of the grapes for Lo de Pepitín takes place with indigenous yeasts (natural yeasts that occur naturally on the grapes) in open stainless steel tanks. 40% of the grapes are fermented in whole bunches, which gives extra structure and freshness to the wine. The wine is aged for 8 months, during which:
- 50% is matured in 500-litre French oak barrels (adds subtle wood notes and complexity).
- 50% matures in clay amphorae from Villarrobledo (provides a pure and mineral expression of the grape).
The wine is made with minimal intervention, which means that it is made as naturally as possible, without unnecessary additives or manipulations. The vineyards are located in Canyada, Alicante and the vines were planted in 1976, which ensures low yields and a high concentration in the grapes. The vineyard is located on a loamy sandy-clay soil with a striking red color and a high content of active limestone (which provides minerality and freshness to the wine).
The vines are grown as bush vines, which provides natural protection against heat and drought. The cultivation is dry farming, without irrigation, which allows the roots to grow deep into the ground and add complexity to the wine. After sixty years, the roots can be as deep as 20 meters.
The 2023 Lo de Pepitín has developed beautifully in a short time with a surprising complexity, freshness and harmony.
Tasting notes
Color: Bright ruby red
Nose: Floral notes, red fruit and aromatic herbs
Taste: Medium body, fine tannins, fresh and elegant
| Type of Wine | Red |
|---|---|
| Country | Spain |
| Region | Alicante |
| Winery | Colección de Toneles Centenarios |
| Grape | Bobal, Monastrell, Mourvedre |
| Biological certified | No |
| Natural wine | No |
| Vegan | No |
| Vintage | 2023 |
| Drinking as of | 2025 |
| Drinking till | 2030 |
| Alcohol % | 13.5 |
| Alcohol free/low | No |
| Content | 0.75 ltr |
| Oak aging | Yes |
| Sparkling | No |
| Dessert wine | No |
| Closure | Cork |
| Parker rating | 93 |
| Tasting Profiles | Aards, Boers, Donker fruit, Droog, Fruitig |
| Drink moments | Barbecue, Borrelen, Cadeau!, Met vrienden, Voor alledag |
Parker
The Wine Advocate
RP 92+
Reviewed by:
Luis Gutiérrez
Release Price:
$45
Drink Date:
2025 - 2029
Once again, I tasted the bright ruby-red 2023 Lo de Pepitín, which felt very young when I tasted it last year. It has developed more complexity and comes through as fresh and harmonious, with floral notes, hints of red fruit and aromatic herbs. It has a medium-bodied palate and fine tannins and is fresh and elegant.
Colección de Toneles Centenarios keeps adding table wines to their portfolio—two whites this time—and bottling small quantities of old Fondillón. They are in the process of getting biodynamic certification, and the vineyards have been organic since 2011; but for now, the wines don't carry any certification. It's a very interesting project with focus and a limited production of around 45,000 bottles per year, including 18,000 bottles of vermouth.
Published: Jan 09, 2025
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua...
Exclusive Content
Sign in to unlock professional wine reviews from world-renowned critics
The Colección de Toneles Centenarios company was born from an extraordinary treasure: the barrel room of the Ferrero wineries, an old wine producing winery in Alicante, located in the city of Cañada, Alicante. There they found 25 old barrels that have been forgotten for more than 60 years. The barrels contained extremely old and also extremely expensive wines.
The family still has 25 hectares of vineyards, from which they resume the production of wines destined to produce Fondillón. Fondillon is a completely separate category of wine and is a sweet, undistilled wine made from extra ripe Monastrell grapes that are harvested later than normal, before being pressed, fermented with the skins and then aged in oak for at least ten years barrels. It is located in between a sherry and a port, but an important element is that the wine is not fortified, so it consists purely of the grapes.
The Fondillón comes from the Alicante region and has thus naturally reached its high alcohol content and belongs to one of the most important historical wines in Europe. It should only be made with 100% Monastrell grape from Alicante. The high natural alcohol value is achieved by ripening the grapes on the vine itself, which promotes both the highest levels of aromas and flavors of the Monastrell grape, produced by the solera system during the fermentation and aging process. Through this system, one portion of each barrel is tapped into the next when bottled, filling the decay with aged wine from the finest selection of Monastrell grape, Alicante's main variety. The production and aging is done with all the care and attention that is required by a noble wine.
The Fondillón was born in the former orchard of the city of Alicante and later spread to the neighboring area of Vinalopó where it currently produces wines. It was one of the most prestigious wines in the world until the phylloxera crisis and industrialization led to the disappearance of many wineries. Fortunately, this wine is coming back all the way and there are a number of high-quality wine companies that supply this beautiful wine, with Colección de Toneles Centenarios being very much at the top. Especially with their Fondillón Luis XIV of more than 60 years old, but also the 25-year-old version are very beautiful with very high international ratings. They are pricy wines, especially given the very long maturation, but actually only a fraction compared to some Sauternes.
The 4 characteristics of Fondillón:
- Denomination of Origin Alicante.Monastrell grape
- Minimum of 10 years of aging and aging in oak barrels
- Minimum of 16º or natural alcohol, never added alcohol
Since the grapes remain on the bushes to dry in (as is done for example in Puglia at Primitvo and is called appassimento there, but is also in principle the same as an Amarone) it also has to cooperate again. When autumn sets in early and the rains start, the grape cannot build up the sugars to create the minimum natural 16% alcohol, so these wines can always be made in the good years, and every year again poses the question whether it will work. The final wine is always a Non Vintage and the barrels therefore contain the blend of various years.