All wines
Boris
Beykush
Loca Deserta
2022
3.9
Region
Ukraine › Mykolaiv Oblast
Type
red · still
Grapes
Saperavi, Merlot, Malbec, Tempranillo, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Rubin
Alcohol
13.5%
Volume
750 mL
Tasting Notes(1)
3.9
Listen, strangely, it works - oak is here but not overdone. The familiar Beykush red-fruit register from the 2019 - cherries, figs, a hint of coffee, a faint marmalade-toast edge - all carried through but dialled back; the 2019 was powerful and almost full-bodied with the oak more apparent, the 2022 reads quieter, less plush, the multi-grape blend playing through finesse rather than force. Worth following.
About
Loca Deserta - medieval Latin for the depopulated Pontic steppe, the Wild Fields (Дике Поле) of XVI-XVII century European maps - is Beykush's historical-series red, a multi-variety blend assembled from individually fermented and barrel-aged lots. The 2022 blend per back label: Merlot 28%, Cabernet Sauvignon & Franc 18% (combined), Malbec 18%, Tempranillo 18%, Rubin 9%, Saperavi 9%. Rubin is a Bulgarian Syrah x Nebbiolo crossing bred at Pleven in 1944 - peppery and tannic with violet aromatics, early-ripening; the producer's website variant of the blend (with Pinot Noir 5% and no Saperavi) is contradicted by the bottle.
Hand-picked mid-October. Each variety fermented separately in temperature-controlled stainless steel; malolactic completed before pressing; then 30 months separate elevage in French and American oak before assembly, with about six months in bottle before release. 13.5%. Vineyards sit on the flat watershed plateau between the Buzky and Berezan limans, dark-chestnut loamy soils.
2022 was the first Beykush vintage harvested after the full-scale invasion. The estate is in Chornomorka, near the Ochakiv naval area; the team worked vines under regular shelling and brought the year in.
