Round, balanced, nuanced, and elegantly poised — that’s how connoisseurs describe 2018 Malabrigo. This wine is often hailed as the jewel in the Cepa 21 crown, a project born on the sandy clay soils of Ribera del Duero and shaped by extreme seasonal swings. Its long-term aging plan aims to deliver body, finesse, and character in every glass.
“It’s a wine with a soul,” notes José Moro, who led the Emilio Moro brand until recently. The Cepa 21 venture began as an innovative dream within a famed wine corridor that has continued to grow since its inception around the turn of the century. Centuries-old tradition meets persistent innovation in this family-driven project, embodying a philosophy that has helped Cepa 21 gain recognition in some of the world’s most prestigious competitions.
The Malabrigo 2018 harvest earned the Silver Medal at the Decanter World Wine Awards in 2022, a testament to the wine’s depth and the team’s craftsmanship. It also drew praise from James Suckling, the influential American critic, who applauded the vintage for its balance and potential. An evocative memory from the year’s work recalls a harvest moment: a farmer gazes across his vines as pruning begins, recalling lessons learned beside a father during chilly March days, with just bread and chorizo to sustain them. This year’s harvest, affected by summer heat, faced a slight shift in timing for the vines.
Suckling’s accolades extend to Cepa 21’s graduate program and the winery’s flagship wine Horcajo, both celebrated for their quality. The Cepa 21 portfolio showcases grapes dominated by the Tempranillo variety, cherished for delivering vibrant fruit early on while retaining the structure needed to age gracefully for decades. Moro emphasizes that this Tinta Fina grape can produce a young wine bursting with fruit and also carry a wine through 30 years of aging, sometimes moving observers to tears with its depth.
In the Cepa 21 cellar, a bottle of Malabrigo rests as a symbol of the estate’s terroir. The vineyard team manages a precinct of century-old vines spread over fifty hectares, facing north to emphasize fruiting power. The site sits at altitudes between 750 and 900 meters, where clusters emerge with distinctive blackberry notes that evolve in French oak during the aging process. Native yeasts from the estate’s own vineyards help preserve the wine’s identity, aligning soil, climate, variety, and oak with the fermentation that follows. Moro explains that while the soil and wood are key, the yeasts used in fermentation also shape the final character of the wine — a reminder that the entire terroir contributes to the final bottle and the spirit of the vineyard. Some wines in the Cepa 21 lineup embody this vineyard spirit through every stage of production, from grape to glass.
Authentic wine begins with a scent of earth and mineral richness, a result of roots drawing nourishment from the soil. Moro credits his family’s decades of care, dating back to 1989 when the winery began marketing the grape they had tended since dawn. The story unfolds from family estates in Valladolid, where the Emilio Moro brand cultivated a century-old red grape in a clay-laden limestone soil, shaped by moderate rainfall, dry summers, and a long, challenging winter climate. Moro led the company for three decades, guiding the brand through growth until a leadership transition earlier this year. He remains a vocal advocate for a Spanish wine that harmonizes national character with international aspiration, pushing Cepa 21 onto the global stage with a fresh, modern voice and a deep respect for tradition. The journey continues as this winemaking family threads together heritage and innovation, inviting readers to explore the evolving tapestry of Cepa 21’s wines without turning away from the roots that define them.