La Vizcaína El Rapolao 2023
£19.06 (Inc. VAT bot. 75 cl.) / Spain
Bodegas y Viñedos Raúl Pérez
Bierzo
Other vintages: 2022
Available in 2 days
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2023 La Vizcaína El Rapolao has some citrus freshness (blood orange) that balances the natural rusticity the place gives to the wine. It has abundant, slightly dusty tannins that come from a year with good yields. This is mostly Mencía (with some field blend), and 80% of the grapes come from a vineyard planted in 1974 to 1976, one of the youngest plots in the lieu-dit. Fermentation was with indigenous yeasts and without temperature control. They produced 4,500 bottles in 2023.
Features
Type of wine
Pairings
Style
Occasions
Winery
Size
Country
Region
Appellation
Alcohol
13.5%
Description
In the northernmost part of Bierzo, where the mountains are covered in mist in the early hours of the day and the red clay and slate soil preserves the memory of centuries of cultivation, El Rapolao is born. This mythical plot in the municipality of Valtuille de Abajo, facing north and bathed by a cool Atlantic climate, has been for generations the best kept secret of the old winegrowers of Bierzo.
Raúl Pérez, a restless soul and an essential figure in the Spanish wine revival, found in El Rapolao a challenge and a promise. Son of this land, he grew up among barrels and grape harvests, but decided to break with conventions when everything seemed definite: he opted for wines that spoke softly but profoundly, that did not seek immediate impact but persistent emotion.
The La Vizcaína series is the result of that commitment: an almost Burgundian interpretation of Bierzo, where each plot is vinified separately, respecting its identity. The Rapolao -planted mainly with oldMencía in goblet and with small touches of other autochthonous varieties such as Alicante Bouschet, Bastardo or Doña Blanca-represents the coldest, bleakest and most austere side of the region. And perhaps for that reason, it is also the deepest.
Winemaking
The grapes are harvested by hand and meticulously selected in the vineyard. The grapes ferment in large open vats, whole cluster and without temperature control, relying on indigenous yeasts to start the magic. Prolonged maceration lasts several weeks, with gentle punch-downs that respect the fragility of the fruit.
After alcoholic fermentation, the wine is transferred to used French oak barrels where it undergoes malolactic fermentation and remains for approximately 12 months. It is not clarified or filtered, in order to preserve its natural texture, energy and authenticity.
This method of minimal intervention, almost contemplative, allows La Vizcaína El Rapolao to speak without interference: it is not a question of making a wine, but of letting it make itself.
Taste
From the first contact with the glass, La Vizcaína El Rapolao offers an atmosphere: mist, damp earth, roots and time. The nose is ethereal and subtle, with notes of tobacco leaf, sour cherry, wild raspberry and wilted violets, all wrapped in a haze of graphite, iron and wet earth.
Nothing here is immediate or exuberant. The wine unfolds slowly, like a book that cannot be read in one sitting. The palate is restrained, medium-bodied, with wonderful tension: Atlantic acidity stretches the wine towards a sharp finish, while the very fine, almost dusty tannins caress the palate with an elegance of aged silk.
The fruit is intuited rather than imposed: unripe black plums, dried blueberries, an almost saline background reminiscent of cured meat and hot stone. There is something raw, primitive and at the same time delicate in its expression.
La Vizcaína El Rapolao is not a wine that seeks to please. It is a wine that demands attention, time and silence. A mineral and melancholic work that invites you to think more than to drink. And yet, once understood, it is difficult not to surrender to its depth.
Ideal with small game, wild mushroom dishes or simply in solitude, for a long conversation with oneself.
Shipping to Peninsular Spain
FREE shipping on orders over £174.85 or for 18 bottles or more in 6-bottle multiples (24, 30, 36, 42, 48, 54 and 60 bottles)Estimated transit time: 2-3 working days.
| Bottles | Price | Over £174.85 |
|---|---|---|
| 1-6 | £6.03 | £0.00 (-£6.03) |
| 7-12 | £6.03 | £0.00 (-£6.03) |
| 13-17 | £11.28 | £0.00 (-£11.28) |
| 18 | Free | £0.00 (Free) |
| 19-23 | £13.90 | £0.00 (-£13.90) |
| 24 | Free | £0.00 (Free) |
| 25-29 | £17.31 | £0.00 (-£17.31) |
| 30 | Free | £0.00 (Free) |
| 31-35 | £20.02 | £0.00 (-£20.02) |
| 36 | Free | £0.00 (Free) |
| 37-41 | £23.52 | £0.00 (-£23.52) |
| 42 | Free | £0.00 (Free) |
| 43-47 | £25.27 | £0.00 (-£25.27) |
| 48 | Free | £0.00 (Free) |
| 49-53 | £29.64 | £0.00 (-£29.64) |
| 54 | Free | £0.00 (Free) |
| 55-59 | £31.39 | £0.00 (-£31.39) |
| 60 | Free | £0.00 (Free) |
| VAT included | ||
Raúl Pérez Pico Ferreira Paradela 2020
£43.54
£41.36/ud (-5%)
Raúl Pérez Ánfora Tinto Valtuille 2020
£36.81
£34.97/ud (-5%)
Valtuille La Cova de la Raposa 2018
£39.47
£37.50/ud (-5%)
Bodegas y Viñedos Raúl Pérez
Bierzo
Valtuille Villegas 2022
£46.29
£43.98/ud (-5%)
Bodegas y Viñedos Raúl Pérez
Bierzo
Other vintages: 2020
Valtuille Godello 2021
£38.47
£36.54/ud (-5%)
Bodegas y Viñedos Raúl Pérez
Bierzo
Other vintages: 2019
Castro Candaz Finca El Curvado 2021
£15.65
£14.87/ud (-5%)
Bodegas y Viñedos Raúl Pérez
Ribeira Sacra
Ultreia La Cova de la Raposa 2021
£41.97
£39.87/ud (-5%)
Bodegas y Viñedos Raúl Pérez
Bierzo
