Descendientes de J. Palacios Moncerbal 2023

Moncerbal is a lieu-dit in the village of Corullón, in western Bierzo, on the border with Galicia. The old Mencía vines are planted here on steep slopes where the Atlantic influence brings freshness and humidity while the León mountains shelter the vineyard. This hillside terroir, with its poor, stony soils, gives wines of great tension, emblematic of the revival of the DO Bierzo appellation.

The grapes are harvested by hand and then partially destemmed. Fermentation takes place in wooden vats with native yeasts, followed by a long maceration of around 44 days. Malolactic fermentation takes place spontaneously, again in wooden vats. The wine is then aged for 10 months in French oak barrels and bottled without fining or filtration, in order to preserve the full expression of the site.

This wine reveals notes of wild strawberry, raspberry, violet, fresh herbs, white pepper, nori seaweed, date and damp stone. Vibrant red fruit opens onto a floral and spicy palette, lifted by an iodine touch. The lively, precise palate glides over fine, chalky tannins, with a velvety texture and a sapid, long and mineral finish.

The history of wine in Spain is so ancient that no one really knows who first brought the vines to the region. By the time the Phoenicians arrived some 3,000 years ago and founded the present-day cities of Cádiz and Jerez, viticulture was already well established, and Spanish wines were widely traded throughout the Mediterranean and North Africa. You could say that Spain is a winemaking miracle. After years on the sidelines of the world of fine wines, it is now a major player. Investment and ambition in vineyards and wineries are resulting in increasingly rich, complex (often high in alcohol), and spicy reds that are gaining popularity with international consumers. Proud to have more land dedicated to vines than any other country, Spain is only now beginning to capitalize on this resource in a consistent way. Spain is a chaotic jumble of regions and subregions, much like its landscape is a chaotic jumble of incredibly rugged scenery. A glance at a map reveals the climatic diversity among Spain's many wine regions, from the lush, green vineyards of Galicia on the northern Atlantic coast to the parched vineyards of the southeastern Mediterranean. Spain's saving grace for viticulture is the average altitude of its vineyards, which is over 600 meters. Many Spanish vineyards are thus able to produce grapes with good color and acidity simply because nighttime temperatures are relatively low and the grapes don't ripen until after a sufficiently long growing season. But there is a real treasure trove to be found for those willing to dig, and now that a class of connoisseurs has developed in Spain, all sorts of ambitious investors have done their part to change the image of Spanish wine. Today, a new generation of winemakers has quietly begun to craft spectacular wines and experiment with grape varieties that would have been unthinkable not so long ago. Wine remains an important commodity and an integral part of Spanish culture.