Winemaker Notes
La Vizcaina La Poulosa, elaborated by Cesar Marquez and Raul Perez, shows a great variety of fruity notes in nose, with special incidence of red fruits such as strawberries, raspberries and cherries. In mouth it gives a great balance between tannins and acidity. It is deep, pleasant and intense.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2019 La Vizcaína La Poulosa was the first vineyard to be harvested, so the wine is a lot fresher than in the past. They now control almost 100% of the vineyards they use, which has also translated into more precision. It's still juicy and approachable. 9,000 bottles produced. They now have almost three hectares in this cru.
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Vinous
Glistening ruby-red. Ripe, spice-tinged blackberry, cherry cola, licorice and pungent floral qualities on the fragrant nose. Intense red and dark berry liqueur flavors are energized by building spice and smoky mineral flourishes. Concentrated as well as lively and focused, finishing with strong, youthfully tannic persistence and suggestions of candied violet and exotic spices.
Primarily found in the Bierzo, Ribeira Sacra and Valdeorras regions of Spain and in the Dão of Portugal (where it is called Jaen), Mencia is an early ripening, low acid grape that can produce wines of great concentration, complexity and ageability. And yet Mencia once suffered from a poor reputation and deemed capable of producing simple and light red wines. Post-phylloxera growers would grow this variety on low, fertile plains, which produced high yields and uncomplicated finished wines. Somm Secret—The recent rediscovery of the ancient, abandoned vines planted on rugged hillsides of deep schist has unveiled the potential of Mencia and added discredit to its old reputation.
One of the few northwestern Spanish regions with a focus on a red variety, Bierzo, part of Castilla y León, is home to the flowery and fruity Mencia grape. Mencia produces balanced and bright red wines full of strawberry, raspberry, pomegranate, baking spice, pepper and black licorice. The well-drained soils of Bierzo are slate and granite.