2024s from Ponce
Up there with the best yet from this trailblazing Spanish estate
The wines have achieved a level of refinement, elegance and purity that makes them overdeliver for the prices asked. Ponce's wines overall could be the biggest bargains in Spain! Bravo!
Luis Gutiérrez, robertparker.com, February 2026
2024 Ponce La Estrecha
£155 per 6 bottle case in bond
2024 Ponce
£245 per 6 bottle case in bond
I am like a stuck record when it comes to the wines of Antonio Ponce (pronounced pon-thay). I have said it before and I’ll say this once more (sorry!):
He is crafting exceptional, individual wines that offer great value. They drink comparatively young. They raise the bar for a lesser-known variety or two. They are immensely rewarding. They are not heavily extracted, inky wines that have been matured in oak for an extended period to soften. No, not at all, they are gently extracted, fresh inviting wines with a terrific core of fruit.
This small estate was founded by Juan Antonio Ponce in 2005 at the age of 23. His family had been growing grapes in the region for generations but had not previously bottled their own wines. Their estate is situated in Manchuela, due west of Valencia. Bobal is the dominant grape variety in this territory and, together with Ribera del Júcar and Utiel-Requena, Manchuela completes the trio of Denominación de Origen. The Ponce family owns approaching 70 hectares of vineyard today in the villages of Iniesta, Villanueva de la Jara, Villamalea and Mahora, yet tends to produce small volumes of multiple wines from different parcels. A recent addition of 17 hectares at higher altitudes enabled them to add the white Albilla to their holding, as well as reds Monastrell and Garnacha that are seldom seen in Manchuela. Juan Antonio’s approach is to express the differences between the vineyards and today his estate is farmed according to biodynamic principles.
Bobal has been cultivated here for hundreds of years and is well-suited to these conditions; it possesses a thick skin, delivers ripe fruit, and crucially retains its acidity well even in this dry climate, producing age-worthy wines. The hillside vineyards here permit some spectacular sloping vineyards at lofty altitudes. Ponce’s vineyards are planted at an altitude of 700 metres or more and consist of vines averaging 50 years of age, with the oldest more than 80 years. Yield is an important consideration with Bobal and old vines with their naturally lower yield allow for a limited, yet intense crop. As I commented before, the name ‘Bobal’ is said to have come from the Latin ‘bovale’ meaning shaped like the head of bull and is said to relate to the appearance of the clusters of tightly packed grapes on the vine.
The winemaking approach at Ponce is remarkably traditional, though very little sulphur dioxide is used to preserve the wines. The aim is to produce wine as naturally as makes sense. The grapes are fermented with their stems, as is an increasing trend in modern-day Burgundy. The stems, when ripe, are a valuable source of tannins and add a spicy complexity to the resultant wines. Considerable care is taken to avoid extracting harsh tannins from the skins of the fruit; after all, Bobal is rich in colouring material and tannin anyway. The wines are usually aged in large barrels of 600 litres for 10-12 months before being bottled. As you might expect from their approach, no fining or filtration is employed.
La Estrecha 2024 and Ponce 2024 – two expressions, one philosophy
I tasted these two wines this morning and while they share a common philosophy, La Estrecha and Ponce articulate it in distinctly different ways.
La Estrecha 2024 comes from a specific, narrow plot of old vines that has long been associated with finesse and aromatic lift. Historically, this site has produced wines that favour elegance over power, offering detail, subtlety and a sense of completeness that feels almost effortless. The 2024 continues that theme, leaning into freshness and poise rather than grip or depth, with tannins that feel finely shaped and quietly supportive. It is a wine that reveals itself gradually, less immediate in its impact but deeply persuasive with time and attention. Count me in.
By contrast, Ponce 2024 sits at the apex of the range and carries greater breadth and authority through the palate. It is more structural in feel, with a denser mid palate and a more overt sense of seriousness, yet without losing clarity or energy. The interplay between varieties, and the higher proportion of Moravia Agria, in this cuvée brings a broader aromatic spectrum and a firmer sense of drive, giving the wine gravitas while retaining the lift and freshness that define the house style. It is the estate’s benchmark red: composed, confident and quietly emphatic. I think it needs just a little more time in bottle this year than perhaps other recent successful vintages. There is so much potential here – a point picked up by Juan Antonio himself as well as Luis Gutiérrez in his notes below.
Taken together, the two wines offer a compelling insight into what Juan Antonio Ponce is achieving today—clarity of site, sensitivity to vintage, and an unwavering commitment to balance and expression rather than sheer impact. These wines have such broad appeal and reveal an uncommon sense of balance and poise.
2024 Ponce La Estrecha
£155 per 6 bottle case in bond
98 points, Luis Gutiérrez, robertparker.com, February 2026
The 2024 La Estrecha comes from a plot that tends to deliver finesse, a floral character and complexity. It shows freshness and approachability, but it can also age. It fermented with full clusters in 4,500-liter oak vats with indigenous yeasts and matured in a 5,000-liter oak vat until right before the next harvest. It's an old Bobal vineyard on granite soils that has some 10% other varieties. It comes in at 12.2% alcohol (12.5% on the label), a pH of 3.5 and 5.7 grams of acidity. It started a little shy but with nuance and detail and then becomes insinuating and serious. This is always one of my favorite wines here, irrespective of the price. Here, the varietal blend and possibly the soils make it very elegant, complex and complete, with very fine chalky tannins and less grippy than those from the Pino. This could very well be the highlight from the 2024 vintage. 5,200 bottles produced. It was bottled in July 2025. Drink 2026-2036
2024 Ponce
£245 per 6 bottle case in bond
98 points, Luis Gutiérrez, robertparker.com, February 2026
The top of the range in red is the 2024 Ponce, this year a blend of 70% Bobal and 30% Moravia Agria, which is higher than ever because Moravia suffered less from the frost than Bobal (they're from the same vineyard), and in the warmish 2024, it ripened thoroughly (it's not an easy grape). It fermented with 100% full clusters and indigenous yeasts in 4,500-liter oak vats and matured in a 5,000-liter oak vat for eight months. It has some iron-like notes and is a little earthier, with fine rusticity, but with seriousness, and even if it sounds like a contradiction, it has elegance, developing notes of violets and getting rid of the iron notes with time in the glass. It's balanced, juicy and vibrant, long and fresh, with a very serious mid-palate, the two varieties complementing each other nicely. They harvested early here too. For Juan António Ponce, this is the finest year for this wine that he has produced since 2018. 6,800 bottles produced. It was bottled in August 2025. Drink 2026-2040
Please let us know of your interest. You might get the feeling that I am seriously keen on these wines.
Simon
simon.larkin@atlasfinewines.com