100% Garnacha Tinta – D.O. Navarra. Viña Zorzal calls this 2025 Garnacha a vino de comarca histórica: a wine assembled from Corella, Cintruénigo, Fitero and Lerga to express a broader landscape rather than an individual parcel.
Navarra fits several wine regions into barely one hundred kilometres. From the greener hills near Pamplona to the dry banks of the Ebro, Atlantic, continental and Mediterranean influences cross a landscape of mountains, river terraces, plateaus and open plains. Garnacha is the thread running through all of them, yet it changes markedly with altitude, rainfall and soil. Each village contributes something different, making the blend almost a map of Navarra’s Garnacha country.
Most of the fruit comes from Corella, Cintruénigo and Fitero, in Navarra’s Ribera Baja. This is a broad, semi-arid landscape stretching across the Ebro valley beneath the distant presence of Moncayo: pale earth, sparse vegetation, orchards clustered around the waterways and vineyards rooted in deep, stony terraces.
Annual rainfall is only around 360–385 mm, leaving the vines with a substantial water deficit. The soils combine brown limestone, loam, river stones, marl, sandstone and conglomerate; they retain enough water to carry the vines through summer while naturally controlling their vigour. Garnacha dominates the red vineyards here, followed by Tempranillo.
Fitero introduces another shape into this apparently flat southern landscape. At the first foothills of the Sistema Ibérico, the ground becomes rougher, more broken and visibly mineral. Viña Zorzal has built much of its reputation by recovering old bush-vine Garnacha from these slopes, where stones, limestone and varied clays produce wines with considerable tension and aromatic detail.
Then Lerga changes the equation. Located at around 615 metres, northeast of San Martín de Unx, it is cooler and receives more rain than Fitero. Viña Zorzal began incorporating Lerga fruit into this wine in 2020, bringing lower pH, sharper red-fruit definition and a distinctive herbal freshness. The southern villages provide ripeness, generosity and savoury warmth; Lerga draws the wine upwards, tightening its line and lengthening its finish.
This geographical range is the central intelligence of Viña Zorzal Garnacha. The bottle carries the warmth of the Ribera Baja, the stony energy of Fitero and the cooler lift of Lerga. It is regional blending used with precision: each origin contributes a particular element to the final structure.
Garnacha itself has deep roots in Navarra. The first documented references date from 1746, and the variety became increasingly important during the nineteenth century because of its adaptability and resistance to disease. It remains the defining grape of the denomination, capable of producing Navarra’s famous rosados as well as increasingly refined, aromatic reds such as this one.
The bodega’s story began in 1989 with Antonio Sanz and the family winery in Corella. His sons Xabier, Iñaki and Mikel developed the Viña Zorzal project from 2007, concentrating on native varieties, old vineyards and the detailed expression of individual villages and parcels. The zorzal—the thrush on the label—has since become a familiar emblem of a range extending from inexpensive regional wines to highly regarded single-vineyard Garnachas.
For the 2025, the Garnacha comes from old, organically cultivated bush vines planted on poor, stony soils; the current technical information gives an average vine age of around seventy years. The grapes undergo a cold pre-fermentation maceration, followed by fermentation with indigenous yeasts and gentle extraction. The wine retains a moderate 13.4–13.5% alcohol. Current technical descriptions present it as an unoaked wine, allowing fruit, herbs, stems and soil to define its aromatic profile.
In the glass, it shows a bright, medium-intensity ruby, clear and lively, with a translucent rim that immediately suggests agility and freshness.
The nose opens with wild strawberry, cherry and pomegranate, followed by raspberry, redcurrant and a delicate floral register of rose and violet. The fruit is vivid and freshly defined. With air, the landscape begins to emerge: black pepper, liquorice, bay leaf, thyme and dry earth. A faint sanguine or iron-like note runs underneath, giving the perfume a savoury edge and greater depth.
The aromatic character is expressive without becoming exuberant. Fruit remains at the centre, while flowers, wild herbs, spice and earth gradually gather around it. The absence of marked wood keeps these elements clear and closely connected to the grape.
On the palate, the 2025 is generous in flavour yet agile in movement. Strawberry, sour cherry and pomegranate lead the entry, carried by fresh acidity and soft, fine-grained tannins. The middle is juicy and open, with red plum, pepper, dried herbs and a slight earthy note adding complexity.
A soft chalky texture appears towards the finish, giving the wine more grip than its cheerful fruit initially suggests. The tannins are gentle, creating shape without interrupting the flow. Its 13.4% alcohol feels entirely integrated, providing warmth while preserving the wine’s lightness and energy.
The finish is clean, savoury and persistent: red berries, liquorice, dried herbs and a faint mineral-sanguine trace. The pleasure lies in the combination of purity and movement—bright fruit, moderate alcohol, lively acidity and enough texture to keep each sip interesting. Great value for money.
Serve it slightly cool, ideally around 13–14 °C. Twenty minutes in an open bottle or jug will help the floral, herbal and earthy notes unfold. We had it with lentils and rice, but would work with mushrooms grilled aubergines, barbecued chicken, or enjoy it on its own. 92–93 Bruja points. €6.25 from dicomar.com
(Feature: Wine, Navarra)
keywords: Viña Zorzal Garnacha 2025, 100% Garnacha Tinta – D.O. Navarra
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