2016 Raul Pérez Encinas

Bodegas y Vinedos Raul Perez is in the appellation of Rias Baixas. The estate is owned by the young winemaker and wine entrepreneur Raul Perez, who grew up in a wine-producing family in northern Spain. His family owns Bodega Castro Ventosa, the largest producer in the area, and he worked there and elsewhere before branching out on his own in 2004 and making his own wines. Though the inland regions of northwestern Spain have traditionally been considered unsophisticated when it comes to winemaking, Perez is changing opinions about the historic wines of the region by making limited-production, noteworthy reds and whites from traditional grapes. He is helping revive the classic red Bierzo, a wine made of the Mencia grape, as well as the white wines made from the Godello and Albarino grapes. Perez wines win compliments and ratings in the low- to mid-90s from reviewers.

Bierzo is small, with about 9,500 vineyard acres, and centers around the city of Ponferrado. Located on the same northeastern plain as most of Castilla y Léon, it nevertheless enjoys a climate somewhat similar to Galicia, which means that Bierzo gets more rainfall and milder winter weather than other parts of the region. The primary grape here is Mencia, which is thought to be related to Cabernet Franc. Garnacha Tintorera and Cabernet Sauvignon are planted in small amounts. White wines are made from Godello (Verdelho), Malvasia and Doña Blanc and Palomino. Though white wines are produced much less than reds, Godellos are gaining international popularity as full-bodied, floral white wines. The appellation status for Bierzo was awarded in 1989.