Cesar Marquez Perez Bierzo Mencia Parajes

‘Parajes’ is a mencía-driven village-level red from old vines farmed without pesticides or chemicals. A blend of 85% mencía, and 7% alicante bouschet, along with a tiny amount of a field blend of other local white grapes, half of the grapes for this cuvée are de-stemmed. The grapes are hand harvested and foot-trodden, resulting in partial whole-cluster fermentation, which occurs spontaneously with native yeasts. The wine then spends 12 months in 225 and 500 L barrels, which are blended before bottling. Medium-bodied, this delivers plenty of red and black fruit, along with touches of spice and the savory herbal undertones mencía is prized for. Organically grown.