Vanessa

9.2

🍷This wine comes from the steep, south-facing slopes of a historic vineyard called Las Lamas—a Viña Clasificada within Corullón, Bierzo.

🇪🇸 The “Viña Clasificada” designation in Spain is akin to a “Cru” designation in Burgundy and is fitting for this particular wine, which hails from a celebrated single-vineyard site that showcases the beauty and distinctive qualities of this particular place.

🕰️ This classification departs from Spain’s historical focus on appellation (e.g., Rioja, Ribera del Duero, Bierzo) and aging categories (e.g., Crianza, Reserva, Gran Reserva).

🌿 Las Lamas sits at a high altitude, above slate and clay soils, and is made with fruit of old-vine Mencía by the legendary Descendientes de J. Palacios (DJP).

👌In the glass, this wine had a wonderful structure to age. We opened this bottle in its infancy (something we do from time-to-time out of excitement). 😆

☝️ Not to mention, we truly enjoy visiting and revisiting great wines at all stages of their life, even in their youth.

🍒 Right now, this wine is deliciously pure in its fruit expression with an old soul that emerges as it opens. After decanting, we were greeted with gloriously dark cherry, pomegranate, and berry notes next to tar, rose, spice cake, vanilla, black licorice, cacao, and savory elements.

😋 The palate had sweeter characteristics, though the wine was fully dry. Its acidity was fresh, giving a firm backbone, and its tannins were refined, leaving a lingering presence on the finish.

👏 With time, we imagine it would evolve marvelously to develop layers and enhanced aromatic complexity. — 2 days ago

with Deked1

Steve Rura

9.1

Very tasty aged Portuguese red. If I had it blind, I would guess Northern Spanish - Ribera del Duero or Rioja. Smooth and slightly musty/earthy from the age (got some cork crumbles). Opens pretty quickly, with concentrated red fruit and some blackberry. Pleasant tannic grip with a soft texture. Bold flavor throughout, big body (14.5% abv), some pepper and dry grass on a savory finish. Nice for a reasonable price. — a year ago

Byron Hewett

9.1

Delicious. — 3 years ago

Graham

9.0

Decent but not amazing. Good QPR and love half bottles. — 4 years ago

Brad Alm

8.9

Spicy and interesting! — 5 years ago

Colleen Sullivan

9.0

NakedWines Red Discovery Pack — 6 years ago

Bri Malaspino

8.9

Strong top notes of vanilla. Tart fruit and soft tannins. Notes of coffee and spices. Medium body with ruby color. — 9 days ago

Scott Kahn

9.2

A perfect complement to osso bucco and fish soup! Rich red fruit with good structure - M tannins and M+ acidity. Very enjoyable. — 5 months ago

Stu

9.2

Charrúa in madrid — a year ago

Roger Ray

9.0

"Portuguese Waterdogs are a treasured breed, originally from the southern coast of Portugal, near where our winery originates. Waterdog red wine has a fruity palate with notes of red berries and a touch of wood. Enjoy it with barbecue, roasts and pasta dishes. — 3 years ago

Greg Andrew

9.0

10/29/22 - steak, with asparagus & mashed potatoes! — 4 years ago

with Beth

andy

9.2

天神中村屋うまし。10年と違う — 4 years ago

Owen Mazon

9.5

Has subtle depth, staying power and a direct line of minerality that stays with you in your palette and in your memory. — 6 years ago

Bob McDonald

9.2

See my previous note in February 2026. Very similar to now. This is fulsome and savoury at once - black cherry and raspberry. Very easy to like. Like a hypothetical blend of Syrah and Merlot. The herbal savouriness of Syrah with the softness of a supple Merlot. Made by Alvaro Palacios. Love the flamboyant Spanish label. — 3 months ago

Ted

9.3

Plums and dark chocolate. Very dark in color. Lovely bottle. — 6 months ago

with Jeni

Ed Chin

9.2

Bruised apples and bread that was just fabulously balanced by the acidity. I would have scored higher if the bubbles were more present. — 2 years ago

Riina Nieminen

9.1

Erittäin hyvä viini. Juotiin saapumisiltana Turussa.

@ Turku
w Lauri, Ilana, Jonni, Petja, Venla, Venneri — 4 years ago

Drew Summers

Sales Northampton Wines

9.2

Rich, Beefy Rosé. — 4 years ago

Howard Yang

9.8

Best Mencia I have ever had, still with at least a couple of decades ahead, opaque garnet burgundy color with no sign of bricking, from a small century old vineyard, very distinctive nose of menthol, leather, clove, nutmeg, Asian five spices, pot roasted pork, black licorice, cassis and black plum, full body with fresh acidity and velvety tannin after three hours decant, tastes of black cherry, black berry, clove, licorice, espresso, black plum, mocha, and sandalwood, 588 bottles produced with 6 additional magnum. — 6 years ago

Peter Sultan

9.3

Don’t know if I settled down the third time around or the wine did, but a more focused experience this time. Who knows, maybe three times a charm. An ethereal light to medium body, all balsamic, mushroom notes & wild black currants. — 6 years ago