97 points
"The new wine in 2021 is the 2021 Encinado. It's from a single vineyard they bought in the Alto de San Esteban in Ponferrada, a small steep slope planted with a Mencía field blend on sand and gray slate soils some 70 years ago. The vines had been abandoned and not even pruned for three years, so they are in the process of being recovered. The full clusters were foot trodden and fermented in 1,000L clay amphorae with a long maceration, and the wine matured in used 500-liter French oak barrels for 18 months. It has 12.5% alcohol, the coolness and freshness from the year and the high-altitude place, and it has an ethereal quality to it, still a little shy, perhaps austerity. There is depth and complexity here as well as layers and elegance. I think this vineyard has a lot of potential, and this is great for a debut. 848 bottles produced. It was bottled in February 2022."
Wine Advocate
8/10/2023