From the atlas
Familia Conesa Pago Guijoso
Pago Guijoso in El Bonillo, Albacete, farms a high plateau vineyard divided into individual subplots and vinifies parcels separately.
At A Glance
| Field | Detail |
| Region | Castilla La Mancha |
| Place | El Bonillo, Albacete |
| Designation | Pago Guijoso |
| Vineyard | 132 hectares of vines, estate figure |
| White grapes | Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Viognier and Albariño |
| Red grapes | Tempranillo, Garnacha, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah and Petit Verdot |
| Range | Finca La Sabina, El Beso de las Uvas, La Doncella and Piedra a Piedra |
The Producer
The winery and vineyards of Pago Guijoso sit in El Bonillo, Albacete, in Castilla La Mancha. Australian viticulturist Richard Smart designed the vineyard layout, dividing it into separately managed subplots. The entire vineyard follows organic agriculture criteria, so the wines are certified organic.
The range spans Finca La Sabina, El Beso de las Uvas, La Doncella and Piedra a Piedra, using the estate's white and red grape varieties. Parcel separation begins in the vineyard and continues into the cellar.
Place
Pago Guijoso lies on a plateau approximately 1,000 metres above sea level. Strong thermal contrasts slow grape ripening and increase the polyphenol load of the resulting wines.
The vineyards and winery are in El Bonillo, a municipality in Albacete. The altitude gives the site a long, slow ripening pattern, while the designation keeps the wines tied to this single estate.
Soil And Site
Pebbly soils give Guijoso its name. They contribute minerality and thermal comfort around the roots, linking the ground beneath the vines to the mineral character associated with the site.
Manchega sheep manure is reused as fertilizer across the estate's crops and vineyards. The farming system connects livestock, soil and vines within the same property.
Story
Pago Guijoso built its winery in 1987 among the vineyards to reduce grape transport during harvest. Familia Conesa acquired the property in 2013 and invested heavily in upgrading the winery.
The cellar now vinifies individual parcels in stainless steel tanks and uses ovoid vessels for microvinification. Fruit from separate vineyard plots can therefore be handled in separate vessels before the wines move into their ageing facilities.
Vineyards And Cellar
The estate uses drip irrigation across its crops, reducing water consumption by more than 50 percent. A photovoltaic park produces renewable energy, while water used in winery operations is stored and treated for purification.
The cellar contains six large clay jars dating from 1840, adapted to refine selected wines. It also has two ageing rooms, including one underground room, and more than 500 French oak barrels.
Wines
Finca La Sabina is the estate's fine, complex, vintage specific single variety range, with ageing and an intense finish. El Beso de las Uvas combines a selected red blend with a Chardonnay from the pago's oldest vineyard, aged on lees.
La Doncella is the light, soft single variety tier, focused on fruit and fragrance. La Doncella Chardonnay 2024 is a dry, organic, vegan white made from 100 percent Chardonnay. Piedra a Piedra blends varieties and methods to balance fruit and maturation.
In The Glass
El Beso de las Uvas Chardonnay 2021 is dense and complex on the nose, with a subtle smoky note. The palate is full bodied and marked by a firm, clearly shaped feel.
The Edición 2019 El Beso red combines ripe blackberry, redcurrant and raspberry with spice, leather and smoke from French oak. It is fresh and unctuous on the palate, enveloping the mouth and finishing very long.
Finca La Sabina Syrah 2017 is powerful and intense, with sweet, fleshy tannin. The oak stays balanced and leaves substantial fruit through the finish. Finca La Sabina Gran Reserva Cabernet Sauvignon 2016 brings ripe compote like fruit, spice and a floral note, with mature, expressive, fleshy tannin and well integrated French oak.
A Bottle To Understand It
Choose La Doncella Chardonnay. It is a dry, organic, vegan white made from Chardonnay and sits in the light, soft single variety tier. After alcoholic fermentation, weekly bâtonnage continues for three months before bottling preparation.
Bâtonnage stirs the lees during ageing. In this wine, the palate is unctuous and notably silky, with tropical fruit, ripe pineapple, apple and banana.
Anecdote
Six large clay jars dating from 1840 sit in the Pago Guijoso cellar. The winery adapted the earthenware vessels for refining selected wines, giving objects with a documented date a working role in present production. The jars stand alongside stainless steel tanks, ovoid vessels and French oak barrels, but their use is specific. Pago Guijoso uses them to refine selected wines.
Final Word
Pago Guijoso combines organic high plateau vines with parcel vinification and a range that moves from dry Chardonnay and selected red blends to vintage specific single variety wines from Finca La Sabina.
Sources
- https://pagoguijoso.com/vinos-de-pago-guijoso-el-vinedo/
- https://pagoguijoso.com/vinos-de-pago-guijoso-compromiso/
- https://pagoguijoso.com/vinos-de-pago-guijoso-la-bodega/
- https://www.foodswinesfromspain.com/content/icex-foodswines/en/wine/regions/the-meseta/guijoso-vp.html
- https://pagoguijoso.com/vinos-de-pago-guijoso-la-doncella-chardonnay/
- https://pagoguijoso.com/vinos-de-pago-guijoso-nuestros-vinos/
- https://www.vinum.eu/de/wein/weinsuche/degustationsnotizen/dn/show/10160847/
- https://vinosdiez.com/tienda/vinos-tintos/vino-tinto-de-autor-el-beso-de-las-uvas-coupage-75-cl/
- https://www.vinorea.com/bodegas-familia-conesa/