Grape Variety: Mencia

Colour: Red

A Galician native variety it especially flourishes in Bierzo, a mountainous region, where differential micro-climates and small, low-yielding bushvines (some of which are over 100 years old) produce strong, intense, immensely characterful reds. Mencia delivers incredible complexity at a lower alcohol level than one typically finds in wines from elsewhere in Spain.  Ripening by mid-September, and is well suited to the maritime climate of Bierzo where autumn rains are normal.  Although its DNA has not been mapped entirely, Mencia is definitely not related to Cabernet Franc, despite speculation to the contrary.  Local inhabitants believe that since Bierzo has always been an important stop on the pilgrimage route from northern Europe to Santiago de Compostela, pilgrims brought Mencia vines with them from elsewhere.  However no documentation supports this local speculation. .

Bierzo has a variety of soils ranging from rugged stony well-drained sites to more fertile spots.  Bierzo produces wines from Mencia with uncommon complexity, including young vines.  At the fruity and forward end of the spectrum, these wines are engaging because of their low tannins and lovely ‘not just fruit’ complexity.  At the richer end of the spectrum, the best wines are beautifully balanced and silky, with an exotic earthiness and minerality.  And, importantly, they are capable of combining expressiveness with restraint.

The Pittacum Bierzo Tinto is sourced from 50-90 year-old vineyards, located on poor slate soils so as carefully to force the process of ripening. As with other estates in Bierzo the grapes come from myriad tiny plots. Microclimatic diversity is illustrated by tasting grapes from two adjacent vineyards, one east facing, the other west. The grapes from the latter are sweet and juicy, those from the former has a fine lemony acidity.  Organic fertilisers are used and green practices are employed throughout the vineyard to ensure the health of the vines. Once the timing of the picking of the different plots has been decided, the teams of grape-pickers make the first selection on the vine. Only the healthiest, ripest bunches are packed into 14-kilogram boxes, to prevent them from splitting or becoming bruised. The art of the winemaker is to vinify the different expressions of the Mencia separately and then a find a blend that combines the high-toned red fruits of the cooler vineyard sites with the more powerful, plummy personality of those at lower altitude.

The wine is intense cherry-red colour with a striking purplish rim, very clean and brilliant. It is marked by a complex bouquet, with a wide range of aromas including red fruits (blackberry, raspberry), liquorice and mineral tones, pleasant woody hints, spices – pepper and oregano – and an agreeable backdrop redolent of smoked cocoa. Warm in the mouth, with a significant concentration of fruit, dense and fleshy and sweet tannin it is a tasty wine to be savoured, with a persistent finish and retro-nasal qualities, plus pleasant balsamic resonance.

The wine is rather delicious when served lightly chilled with ham, tuna with peppers, cecina (air-dried beef), asturian bean stew and slow cooked goat.