Hush Xose Lois Sebio 2018

"Hush" is an emblematic label of Galician winemaker Xose Lois Sebio: the name is a clear indication of the silence in which the winemaking project was conducted. Impossible not to call to mind the iconic title of Deep Purple, the band that wrote fundamental pages in the history of rock's origin, a latent passion of Xose Lois.

Xose Lois Sebio makes "Hush" by vinifying an assemblage of absolutely local and almost lost varieties from old vines that date between 70 and 90 years old and planted with a very dense density to make a planting sixth measuring 1.25 by 1.25 meters. Ferrol and Sousón are two among a multitude of other unknown black berries bred over clay soils lining rocks composed of shale. In the areal of Gomariz, the village in the Galician province of Ourense, the vine terraces rise to elevations between 180 and 350 meters above sea level and look eastward toward the valley of the Rio Avia. All field operations are carried out by hand, and harvesting in late October leads to extremely limited yields: the grapes are picked with careful selection and vinified in open steel vats. Alcoholic fermentation is by indigenous yeasts only, and simultaneous maceration on the skins takes place in submerged cap, crushing the pomace by means of the characteristic wooden disc called "bazuqueo." After gentle manual pressing and the initiation of malo-lactic fermentation, it is racked into 500-liter wooden barrels that have previously housed a white wine, where it is finished and a 14-month-long aging process continues.

"Hush" from the bodega Viños de Encostas de XL Sebio offers itself to the eye tinged with a purplish red of high chromatic density. Nothing less than kaleidoscopic, the nose offers deep floral scents, all variegated on the dark and penetrating nuances of violet and lilac, enveloped by a spice of black pepper and a frame of ripe fruitiness in which emerge mighty mineral nuances that refer to chalk and slate. The dark fruit return on the palate, in a sip that proves ample and balanced, mouthwatering and centered on tonic freshness and subtle saline notes, composed of an elegant tannic texture. The finish is very long, aromatic and of extreme finesse.