A rare chance to buy a wine from Raul Perez's oldest vineyard, planted in 1881. Yes, you did read that correctly! The same year that the First Boer War ended. The vines are still planted on their original (pie franco) rootstocks thanks to the higher proportion of sand in the upper section of the vineyard (sand being the natural enemy of the phylloxera bug). It’s a blend of predominantly Mencía, with Bastardo (aka Trousseau) and Garnacha Tintorera (aka Alicante Bouschet) and is beautifully textured, like so many of Raul’s wines, evoking silk drapes and forest berries, dusty spices over sweetly succulent red cherries and hibiscus flower enlivening the finish. It is closest in style to a northern Rhone Syrah, but that’s just clutching at analogous straws, because it’s very much a proud, deeply-flavoured Bierzo wine. Whole cluster fermentation in large oak vats. 60-90 day maceration followed by one year of aging in used 225 and 500 litre barrels. Bottled without fining or filtration. 13.5% alc. Drink now-2030.

Organic
Vegan-friendly

Press reviews:

The Wine Advocate: “The 2020 La Vizcaína La Vitoriana matured mostly in a troncoconic oak foudre and had a very short time in barrel. This wine has more Alicante Bouschet in the blend than others, and they didn't include the white grapes in the vineyard. But against all logic, the wine has more finesse than the 2019. 6,000 bottles produced. Drink now-2029.” 97 points