Raul Perez - Bierzo Tinto Valdecanada 2018

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A blend of mostly Mencía with smaller amounts of Bastardo (Trousseau) and Garnacha Tintorera (Alicante Bouschet) / Sourced from eight different parcels averaging about 700m ASL on schist and slate / Fermented spontaneously in neutral open-top vat with 100% whole bunches / Six months of post-fermentation maceration
Racked to neutral 225L French barriques for about a year of elevage including flor development.

95 Points, Wine Advocate

"The 2018 Valdecañada has lots of iron and blood, rusty nail and iodine. It's earthy, stony and austere—very much with the profile from the soils and the zone that I've seen very clear in the wines from Michelini i Mufatto in my last tasting. It's austere and it's going to require more time." Luis Gutierrez

Raul Perez Description

Raúl Pérez Pereira is universally considered to be one of the world’s most visionary winemakers. Since he produced his first vintage for his family’s winery in 1994 at the age 22, he has been in the forefront of the conversation about what has been called “The New Spain”. In 2005, he left his family business to strike out on his own, creating Bodegas y Viñedos Raúl Pérez, which quickly became the point of reference for the Bierzo appellation. In the intervening years, he has expanded his sphere of activity to include the appellations of Rías Baixas, Ribeira Sacra and Tierra de León, but his heart and his home remain in Valtuille de Abajo, the village in Bierzo where his family has been tending vines for well over 300 years.

In addition to numerous other accolades, Raúl was named “Winemaker of the Year” by German publication Der Feinschmecker in 2014 and “Best Winemaker in the World” for 2015 by the French publication Bettane+Desseauve. In the February 2018 Decanter, Master of Wine Pedro Ballesteros wrote, “Raúl Pérez is the archetype of the intuitive winemaking genius.” A picture of Raúl in that same article is captioned, “Is this the best winemaker in the world?” Raúl would certainly not self-apply any of these superlatives. In fact, his genius is far exceeded by his humility and generosity of spirit. That humility comes through in his wines. These are not “winemaker” wines so much as they are unadulterated expressions of the villages and vineyards from which they hail.