WTN: Bierzo scores again - El Castro de Valtuille

Bierzo El Castro de Valtuille 2006 – Bodega Castro Ventosa, Raúl Pérez viticultor – Alc. 14% - (€19 at our local merchant but €16 at the importer) made from Mencia 100%.

This is another winner from Bierzo alongside the Palacios heirs’ Corullon (€36) and Pétalos 06 (€14 – NB I liked the 07 less) and the Ultreia de St. Jacques (€9) from the same Pérez, who seems to be becoming a star in the region.

It was quite full bodied and mouth-filling with lively acidity and beautifully polished fruit not dissimilar to, but slightly warmer than, those of a Northern Rhône coupled with firm tannic structure. At first I was troubled by somewhat harsh liquorice notes towards the finish (14 months of wood ageing of which one-third new) but these seemed to recede towards the bottom of the decanter; more airing leading to better balance or changed pairing – beef v goat cheese? Powerfully elegant though this is already, I guess there is further improvement potential, though Bierzo has very little track record to bear that out. 16.5/20++

Bierzo wines deserve more study, Tim. Open Mike in the fall might be a good idea, we are all missing out on some fine wines I think.

Bierzo wines deserve more study, Tim. Open Mike in the fall might be a good idea, we are all missing out on some fine wines I think.

Bob, I agree that this would interesting and instructive. The problem for many people could be availability so there might not be a lot of participation. Even here I would have to motor around; a few in Tongeren (60km), more in Mol (80km) and one or two in Brussels (25km).

There are also Mencia based wines in other neighbouring appellations and Jaen is the Portuguese name for the same grape with some mono-varietal examples in Dao.

Good point but then the VV link is getting some attention. I thought it might disappear quick!

Bierzo wines deserve more study, Tim. Open Mike in the fall might be a good idea, we are all missing out on some fine wines I think.

Bob, I agree that this would interesting and instructive. The problem for many people could be availability so there might not be a lot of participation. Even here I would have to motor around; a few in Tongeren (60km), more in Mol (80km) and one or two in Brussels (25km).

There are also Mencia based wines in other neighbouring appellations and Jaen is the Portuguese name for the same grape with some mono-varietal examples in Dao.

Tim: I've heard the Mencia-Jaen linkage pooh-poohed by some in Portugal and, I believe, Victor de la Serna. Maybe he will pop up here and give us the lowdown. A good theme might be something like "Spanish wines that do not include Tempranillo, Garncha or Viura" ? Bring on the Godello!

Tim: I've heard the Mencia-Jaen linkage pooh-poohed by some in Portugal and, I believe, Victor de la Serna. Maybe he will pop up here and give us the lowdown. A good theme might be something like "Spanish wines that do not include Tempranillo, Garncha or Viura" ? Bring on the Godello!

Joe, with reference to Jaen = Mencia and to the age-worthiness of wines from the grape, here is TN of mine from February 2008 about a 1996 mono-varietal Jaen wine together with Victor's comment.

First my TN -

Dão DOC – Jaen – 1996 – Quinta das Maias – Alc. 12.5%.

C: Deep but mature looking.
N: Rich red and dark fruit with an orange peel note and background hints of jam and wood ageing.
P: Rich and full bodied with aromas similar to those on the nose except for the orange peel being more in the background and towards the finish. Whilst there is some structure, the overall impression is quite supple and ingratiating. There was a softening on the finish which, together with the orange peel, suggested that the wine might not have much further to go but right now 15.5/20.

A bottle a few years ago was more aggressively modern; oaky and jammy. Greater age has civilized this bottle which has, indeed, aged much better than two out of three mid-90s up-market Douros which I opened for the Open Mike. I seem to have read somewhere that Jaen is a grape intended to bring suppleness to the blend with little ageing potential on its own, so this is a very creditable performance.

And now Victor's comment -

Was it "modern" back then or was it plain... young? These wines, and not just Bordeaux, are intended to be drunk with some age. Too many times we pass judgment on them way too soon.

BTW, jaen is the same grape known as mencía in Spain, nowadays popular with all those fashionable Bierzo wines. Contrary to what purported gurus may say, it ages very nicely.

I'm a fan of Godello, so I like your suggested theme for an OM. Another way of narrowing down would be to stipulate wine of North Western Spain.

So maybe it wasn't Victor that was questioning the Jaen-Mencia connection. Perhaps it was just some overly nationalistic Portuguese that didn't want their Jaen to be related to a Spanish grape? In any case, I wasn't able to taste too many pure Jaen wines, even when I was visiting the Dao region. I managed to have an OK half bottle from the Penalva co-op with my lunch and tasted a nice version from the newish Lisboa DOC at the ViniPortugal tasting room.

Here is an interesting link discussing Jaen from the perspective of a Dao winemaker. Sadly, I stopped by his place without an appointment but no one who spoke English was around, just a guy who was doing some cellar work (and I didn't want to hassle him). Looked like an interesting producer....but I don't think we get them here in the US.

http://www.winetwo.net/profile/JoaoTavaresdePina

Tim writes....."I'm a fan of Godello, so I like your suggested theme for an OM. Another way of narrowing down would be to stipulate wine of North Western Spain".

Joe, you seem to be interested too? Shall we get the ball rolling next month, hey even try to get the moderators on board by suggesting NW Spain for next months Wine Focus. Red and White!!