I have covered the cutting-edge whites (Tajinaste Blanco, Muradella Blanco, Edetària Selecció Blanc Vinyes Velles, and Conde de los Andes Rioja Blanco) in prior posts and will now turn to the reds, beginning with Guímaro Finca Meixemán 2017. In this post I will discuss the wine region, the producer, the variety, the vineyard, the wine, and the tasting.
The Region
The subject wine is produced in Amandi, one of the five sub-regions of the Galician DO Ribeira Sacra. While Galicia is primarily know for its white wines, Ribeira Sacra is known for its reds; and, especially, its Mencia.
Winemaking in Galicia originated with the ancient Romans and those traditions were upheld during the Middle Ages by the monks who resided in the still-evident monasteries. This religious history is captured in the DO name -- Ribeira Sacra -- which translates to Sacred Shore. But this winemaking tradition collapsed with the Italy-wide movement from farms to cities in the last century, resulting in the loss of know-how and varieties.
Riberia Sacra attained its DO in 1996. Its approximately 1200 ha (2965 acres) hugs the the contours of the Miño and Sil rivers prior to their convergence and the transit of the surviving Miño into Portugal,. The landscape is dominated by steep slopes and river canyons with some vineyards resident on 50-degree slopes. The steepness of these slopes require "heroic" farming a la Mosel and Liguria.
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| Source: https://ribeirasacra.org/ |
Spanishwinelover.com observes that: "... Ribeira Sacra seems to have ticked off all the boxes to become a top player: breathtaking landscapes with dizzying vineyards; a great array of local grape varieties in the process of being recovered; the complexity derived from the diversity of soils, exposure, and elevations; and a generation of terroir-driven, quality-focused producers determined to leave behind the attitudes and short-sighted views of yesteryear."
There are some challenges, however:
- Removing a single ha of traditional vineyard, including stone walls and a railing system to transport harvest cases uphill, costs between 80,000 and 100,000 euros. Solution is potentially to replace stone walls with soil terraces
- Villages are empty
- Difficult to hire people; once hired, they need to be trained.
The Guímaro farm, 8 ha in size, is located in the village of Sober in Ribeira Sacra's Amandi sub-region. The farm has been in the family for ages and has historically operated a mixed agricultural regime. Grapes were sold in bulk until Luis Buitrón signed on as winemaker and encouraged the family to bottle some of the wine on the estate. Luis was also instrumental in the wine education of young Pedro Rodriguez, family scion, taking him to visit wineries in other regions in Spain as well as in France and Italy.
Pedro is the grower today but his parents still work in the vineyards. The vineyards are south-facing and resident on the slate soils just above the River Sil.
Pedro was introduced to Raúl Pérez, the famed Bierzo winemaker, in the early 2000s. The advice that he imparted resulted in Pedro:
- Reducing Mencia yields
- Eliminating the use of chemicals in the vineyard
- Paying closer attention to plot-exposition
- Re-claiming old-fashioned winemaking methods
- Wild yeast fermentation
- Foot-treading in open-top vessels
- Stem inclusion
- Working with low sulfur
- Aging in used barrels.
Pedro is currently moving towards organic certification and is also planting heirloom grape varieties at high elevations in Amandi.
The Variety -- Mencía
The Mencía grape variety is principally found in the northwest of Spain in the DOs of Bierzo (where it has the greatest renown), Ribeira Sacra, Monterrei, and Valdeorras. A total of 9000 ha of vines across those regions are devoted to the variety.
Mencía had historically been dismissed as an indifferent local table wine -- "astringent, pale, and forgettable" -- planted as it was on unsuitable soils. The true capability of the variety was brought to the fore by Alvaro Palacios's successful revitalization efforts in Bierzo and Galicia in the 1990s. Replanting the grape on more suitable hillside schist soils yielded a more concentrated, profound, and elegant wine.
Mencía is a thick-skinned blue grape which ripens early. It is susceptible to botrytis and mildew and will lose its acidity if picked outside of its ripeness window. Picking late also results in increased alcohol levels in the finished wine.
In a discussion on one of the Guildsomm Discussion Boards, James Vercoe spoke to change in Mencía tannin structure as you move inland in Spain.
The wines of Ribeira Sacra are the lightest and most elegant with a gentle schist like (sic) minerality of cold rocks with a gentle tannin but still shows the classic soy character of Mencía (but perhaps more toned down than the more continental regions). The Valdeorras wines are a touch fuller and more deeply marked with amaro-astringency -- I always think of a whole rose bush; the pretty red florals with the sapid astringent stems. In Bierzo the tannin is nutty and ripe and the most pronounced. Here it is the most continentally influenced region and the wines can handle a touch more oaking ... think fuller wines with more plum fruit and less floral ...The Wine
The grapes for the Guímaro Finca Meixemán 2017 were grown on a 1.2 ha namesake plot which sits between 400 and 450 m on southeast-facing slopes. The vines here are 70 years old.
The grapes were subjected to partial whole cluster fermentation with foot treading. After a lengthy maceration, the wines were aged for 13 months in used 225 liter French oak barrels.
Notes: One of the panelists indicated that 2017 was a hot, concentrated year. Deep red fruit on the nose with a hint of tomato and talcum powder. Elegant. Not overbearing on the attack but seems to form a comfortable, soothing resting place on the palate. Strawberries and cherries with a mineral texture. Young and tight but filled with promise.
Another panelist indicated that this wine would cost $30 at retail.
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Mencía wines are gaining critical acclaim as "... one of the country's most exciting and original red wines ... rapidly making a name for itself with wine lovers across the world ..." And high on the list of recommended producers and wines is Guímaro Finca Meixemán.
©Wine -- Mise en abyme
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