I was lucky enough to attend this special masterclass hosted by Comando G: friends Daniel Landi and Fernando Garcia, who have rediscovered the potential of Garnacha in the region of Gredos, Spain.
The name ‘Comando G’ stems from the three Gs of Garnacha, Gredos and Granite soils, which are characteristic of the area and gives the wines their finesse. The Breaking Buds Masterclass, which took place in London in May 2026 aimed to showcase the exciting up-and-coming producers who have realised the potential in the region, working to showcase the Garnacha grapes’ ability to produce wines with enough elegance and finesse to challenge the likes of Burgundy Pinot Noir.
To contextualise the story of the Gredos region, it is situated at the cusp of the Atlantic, where the climatic influence merges with the Mediterranean. Previously, and not so long ago, Gredos was land no one believed had any potential, and Garnacha was considered a worthless grape. It was a lost region, and many prospective winemakers had moved away to more promising winemaking regions.
Comando G rediscovered these abandoned vineyards and realised the potential of these high-altitude vineyards of 9000-1200m set amongst a diversity of landscapes.
The Commando G producers
Vitricola Mentridana - Curro Barreño
A childhood friend of Dani Landi, Curro Barreño is one who left the region in search for better prospects in Galicia but returned back to take responsibility for Landi’s vineyards in Mentrida, where they both grew up. He has had this responsibility since 2021 and has been making outstanding wines such as the Viticola Canto Platero 2024. Based at 720m, the grapes are single vineyard and grown on granitic, silty and iron rich soils. It is smoky, mineral and with a defined complexity. The whole bunch fermentation adds a brightness to the fruit, and the wine is characteristically light and elegant with precise definition.
A Pie de Tierra - David Villamiel
Although A Pie de Tierra is still in its early stages, it is producing some very promising wines. The vineyard is 100% organic, the team is practising berry-by-berry grape selection and light footsteps for gentle extraction. The results are very delicate but nicely balanced wines, expressing the terroir’s smoky minerality and juicy fruit.
Indiano - Charles Gotchac
Founded in 2024 by Macarena Nogara from Argentina and Charles Gotchac from France, a couple who teamed up with Spaniard Jose Maria Garcia Jimenez. The winery covers several different plots of land in Gredos, with each wine aiming to showcase the different terroirs in each. The Indiano Garnacha 2024 comes from 10 plots on either side of the Gredos mountains made from 30% whole clusters, showing juicy dark fruit and grippy tannins.
El Reventón - Adrianna Catena and Gearóid Lane
El Reventón came about from three enthusiastic and passionate winemakers: Adrianna Catena, Alejandro Vigil and Gearóid Lane. The Garnacha vines are planted at a high altitude of 1000 metres and a low-intervention approach is used for the winemaking. I enjoyed the El Reventon 2023, made with delicate handling and slow maceration and aged 11 months in concrete. It is punchy with dark fruit, showing a slate minerality and a slight confected note.
Las Pedreras - Bárbara Requejo
Both of the Las Pedreras wines presented were top in my opinion. A husband-and-wife project, Barbara Requero, the wine expert from Ribera Del Duero and Guzman Sanchez, a chef born in Gredos, have teamed up and used their expertise to produce wines with precision and finesse. I found both the wines particularly outstanding: the Corral de Garganilla 2024 comes from terroir containing a range of stones at 1050m. It spends 11 months ageing in 500L barrels producing an elegant and fresh Garnacha with bright red fruit and a mineral backbone. The Pellito Lindo 2023 comes from a smaller production and felt softer and creamier on the palate, whilst remaining expressive with a lovely acidity and fruity depth.
Rico Nuevo - Juan Andrés Martín Pérez
Rico Nuevo - ‘new rich’ aims to reframe the heritage of the sites and the character of the land through these wines. Juan Andres Martin Perez has a distinctly Burgundian approach. The single vineyard La Quebra 2021 spent two winters ageing in cellar and the pink granite soil the grapes are grown on creates a hiughly perfumed wine with specific fruit aromas.
Niepoort Iberia - Marco Niepoort
Too young but still very interesting were these two from Niepoort Iberia. With roots in fortified wine, Marco makes a Madeira Sercial with the Garnacha, aged in a small port barrel.
The day ended on a high with a taste of Comando G’s magnum of Rozas Premier Garnacha 2017. Thank you to all those involved for a fantastic masterclass!
