Akilia Villa de San Lorenzo Mencia 2019

Akilia's Mencía is a more delicate and nuanced rendition of Mencía, showing savory notes of sage, crushed herbs, earth and palo santo, with edgy red currant, blueberry and cranberry. It ends on an energetic, stoney mineral note, clear evidence of growth on old vines.

This wine is made from 100% Mencía, with 90% coming from the 75-year-old Fontairo vineyard and 10% from the 98-year-old Villarín vineyard, which grow on clay loam soils with quartzite and slate and are cultivated using traditional goblet trained vines.

The grapes were farmed organically and harvested by hand in small boxes, ensuring that the bunches and grapes do on break or rupture. Spontaneous fermentation with native yeast occurred in concrete vats, with 20% carbonic maceration with stems in a separate fermenter. The wine is then aged nine months in concrete (70%) and neutral French oak (30%). Low total SO2 (52mg/L). Bottled unfined and unfiltered. 1,000 cases produced.

Responsible for producing some of Bierzo's most elegant wines, Mario Rovira organically tends a handful of vineyards in the San Lorenzo district of the region, just south of Ponferrada. After his training at La Fleur Petrus and Quintessa, Mario set out to find a region with old vines, indigenous varieties, interesting soils, slopes and a cool climate. After an extensive search, he found the San Lorenzo district of Bierzo, higher and cooler than where most small producers work. Mario named the winery "Akilia" as a nod to the large eagle population in this strikingly beautiful stretch of Galicia, and made it his mission to revive old vineyards of native varieties and showcase the unique character of Bierzo’s terroir. He crafts his wines in a highly specific and intentional way, with great thought behind each decision and a focus on minimal intervention - gentle processing, slow and cool spontaneous fermentations and low SO2.