2022 Raúl Pérez Ultreia La Claudina

Raúl Pérez is without a doubt the most medial 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 yet. Raúl is present in numerous 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 native 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 already vinified dozens of wines in countless different regions (usually in the northwest of Spain, and beyond), but these have never been marketed. He tests, he tries, and often fails. This way of working naturally gives him a lot of experience, which will later enable him to get the most out of one grape variety or one region. Today he makes or helps make more than 80 wines. Finally, he has recently 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 business in the village of Salas de los Barrios. own Ultreia's, the absolute essence of Mencía. Raúl always works as purely as possible. He uses the minimum amount of SO2.

In all the wines Raúl makes, he works with as little intervention as possible. For the red, entire bunches are used and vinified in old barrels. Nothing is added or corrected. The wine is then aged, again in old barrels and also under flor (so the barrels are not refilled). This flor gives the wine natural protection against oxidation during elevage and avoids the addition of sulfites. This flor is naturally present in the Ultreia cellars and Raúl uses it for both his white and red wines!

The Ultreia La Claudina has a low yield and comes from a plot in Valtuille on sandy soils. It comes from one of the oldest plots from a 'single vineyard' just outside Valtuille at an altitude of 500 meters. Production is always only between 1,200-1,5000 bottles. It is a biodynamic wine. with 11 months barrel aging in French oak. In the glass, the La Claudina has a ripe color and an open aromatic palette. The wine must be given air to reveal itself, so the motto is to have a nice rolling. Aromas of ripe pear, nutty and with a citrus touch; minerals unfold in the glass. Broad taste, volume, complex with a beautiful balance between barrel aging and a delicate acidity. Godello with a Burgundian wink.

FACT: The wine is in our conditioned Wine Warehouse and if you pick up the wine you will also receive a nice discount. We are almost next to the Rijksweg with plenty of parking. Click here for address