La Faraona

The pale and delicate 2020 La Faraona is the lowest in alcohol at 13.5% and is more reductive than its siblings—flinty and faintly smoky. It needs breathing, so it might be a good idea to decant it in advance if you're going to open a bottle any time soon. What's important is that the palate is terribly balanced, with lots of ultra fine tannins, silky, soft, full of flavors, elegant, complex and nuanced. It has lots of inner energy and tension, and it's subtle and ethereal. The finish is full of sweet red fruit and violets, nicely balanced by the tannins and the acidity. It's delicious and should develop nicely in bottle and drink well throughout its life. It's hard to compare with previous vintages, as this is more delicate than any previous years. It's a different style but every bit as good as 2019. The vineyard is 85% Mencía and the rest other varieties; when they bought the vineyard, it was 50% white grapes, and they have slowly been replanting and regrafting it, looking after every single plant. It's a half hectare at the top of the slope, at 975 meters in altitude, one of the highest vineyards in Bierzo. Like Moncerbal and Las Lamas, La Faraona is certified organic starting in 2020. Bravo! 1,400 bottles were filled in October 2021.

The 2019 La Faraona comes from the vineyard called El Ferro in the village of Corullón, 0.55 hectares on very steep slopes at 800 to 860 meters in altitude. Like all of their vineyards, it's farmed organically and biodynamically, and they picked the grapes on September 23 and fermented them partly destemmed in oak vats with indigenous yeasts and manual punching down for 47 days. The wine matured in barrel for nine to 10 months. Despite Moncerbal being very showy and floral and almost stealing the show, the depth, complexity and nuance of this 2019 La Faraona is amazing. The palate is a little stiff at this early stage; Ricardo Pérez Palacios made the comparison with the 2010 and 2011 vintages that needed some time in bottle to blossom. There were 1,459 bottles, 77 magnums, 12 double magnums, eight Jeroboams and one Salmanazar produced.

Bright red with crushed-berry and cherry aromas and hints of spices. Subtle black pepper and slate. Ultra-fine tannins and a fruity finish. Yet, it’s so refined and beautiful, long and subtle. Drinkable now, but needs four or five years to come together. Better after 2023 and onwards.