2021 Raul Pérez Ultreia de Valtuille

Raúl Pérez is without a doubt the most mediatized winemaker in all of Spain at the moment. However, his wines are almost impossible to find! Everyone talks about it, but few have tasted it. Raúl is present in countless appellations and regions, not only in Spain, but also in South Africa, Portugal, South America. The common thread in his work is the recovery of vieilles vignes from autochthonous grape varieties and the making of authentic wines with a lot of character and personality. Or to put it in his own words: 'I'd rather make an undrinkably bad Galician wine, but at least let it be a Galician wine.' He has therefore already vinified dozens of wines in countless different regions (mostly in the northwest of Spain, and also beyond), but which have never been marketed. He tests, he tries, and he fails very often. This way of working naturally gives him a lot of experience, with which he is later able to get the most out of one grape variety or one region.

Today he makes or contributes to more than 80 wines. In the end, he has also more or less settled down by renovating two mini bodegas of his own: one in the Tierra de León region, in the village of Valdevimbre, and another in his native region of Bierzo, where he has his home in the village of Salas de los Barrios. makes his own Ultreias, the absolute essence of Mencía. Raúl always works organically and as pure as possible. He uses the minimum of SO2.

Raul Pérez's Ultreia de Valtuille in Bierzo , named after the road (Ultreia) towards Santiago de Compostela. Comes from one plot of 1.1 ha, planted in 1908 at an altitude of 530 m. The entire bunches undergo maceration and fermentation in large casks for 90 days. Then élevage for 12 months in French oak barrels.

In the glass, the Ultreia de Valtuille has a dark red colour. An explosive nose with floral violet tones as well as licorice and red fruit with an earthy undertone. Firm in the mouth, but very nicely balanced with always a good freshness. Our regular customers know that we are a big fan of the wines from this region made from Mencia (or the white Godello) such as the wines from Perez and Val de Sil, for example. The continental influences and the style give the wines a Burgundian signature and gives wines with an incredible value for money!