Raúl Pérez Valdecañada 2019

Raúl Pérez is among the most respected winemakers in Spain, known for working closely with the vineyard and reviving the methods of earlier generations. Valdecañada is a Mencía from Bierzo, in Castilla y León, where the grape grows on slate and clay soils in a transitional climate between Galicia's Atlantic influence and the drier interior. That cool, damp influence and the poor slate soils give Bierzo Mencía its freshness, its floral aromatics and the graphite, mineral edge that runs through this wine. Farming is organic, and the wine is aged twelve months in oak. The barrel time is measured, intended to round the tannins through slow oxygen exchange and add a thread of spice rather than to mark the wine with wood, so the focus stays on fruit and site. The colour is a bright, deep ruby. The nose is fragrant, with wild red berries, cherry, pepper and a smoky, mineral undertone. The palate is medium bodied and energetic, with fine tannin and lively acidity driving a long, savoury finish. Serve at sixteen to eighteen degrees with roast lamb, grilled beef or game.