When you have seen Toro Loco at Aldi you would be forgiven for thinking it’s one of their brands invented just for the supermarket shelf, but it’s very much the real thing. It’s produced by NVC Bodegas in Utiel-Requena, a region just inland from Valencia in Spain. This wine is the result of a community effort involving more than 3,000 local families with most of the grapes being hand-picked.
The name comes from old Spanish, ‘Toro’ referencing ‘bull head’ and ‘Loco’ meaning ‘crazy’. This particular bottle is made entirely from Bobal grapes, from the 2024 vintage, with an alcohol content of 11.5%. It recently picked up a silver medal at the 2024 Catavinum World Wines and Spirits Competition.
It has a salmon-pink colour and offers a bright raspberry scent. From very cold, it starts with a dry cranberry taste that becomes much rounder and sweeter as the wine warms in the glass. As the label suggests, serving it at 10°C, it’s more expressive when it’s allowed to come up a bit in temperature. Where most inexpensive rosés, and indeed whites, start to become unpalatable when even warmer than this, this one continues to build in character, developing a surprising depth and structure that’s very rare in this price range. Bobal is more often used for red wines, which might explain this.
At just £5.49 from Aldi and bottled at source rather than bulk-bottled in the UK, it’s amazing how such a flavoursome Rosé can be sold at this great price.
