Bodegas Maurodos, Toro (Castilla y León, Spain) 2012

This is one of the finest young renditions of San Roman that I’ve ever tasted, and that is really saying something, as this is my single favorite of all the wines of Toro (despite the fact that it is not the most expensive).  The color remains strikingly dark at three years of age, with very concentrated pigmentation that suggests the wine will — when tasted — prove to be hard at best and impenetrable at worst.  But that isn’t what happens at all.  Far less overtly oaky than some earlier renditions of this wine that I’ve tasted, it is already showing an uncanny combination of succulence and structure, with dark cherry and berry fruit that displays great power but also a purity and tenderness that permits immediate enjoyment if the wine is aerated and paired with (even moderately) robust food.  This will develop in positive ways for a full decade, and savory accents are already emerging around the edges, but it is already completely convincing.