Raul Perez is an icon in Bierzo. His Ultreia wines set the standard for what Mencia can achieve in the right hands. Before he started piling up Winemaker of the Year awards and changing the face of Spanish wine, Raul was a young winemaker working for the family estate in his home village of Valtuille de Abajo. Founded in 1752, Castro Ventosa’s traditions run deep. So deep that Raul Perez had to leave the family business to become an international superstar before quietly returning in the 2010s to make the wine and train his son Gabriel and nephew Cesar Marquez in his style of making Mencia. The vineyards that produce this wine are up to a century old, planted in the sand and slate on the slopes of the valley, and with a fresh eye on technique that focuses on handling the grapes as gently as possible and preserving the purity of fruit and minerality, this humble Mencia produces an incredibly rich aromatic spectrum, spanning from blackberry, cherry, and blood orange to sage, tarragon, underbrush and baking spice. The palate balances considerable weight and velvety tannins with charmingly brisk acidity that deftly juggles black fruits, black pepper, and granite edged soil notes. The finish echoes with exotic spices and orange peel and a clean burst of acidity.