Rafael Palacios Valdeorras As Sortes Val Do Bibei 2015 750ml

The 2015 As Sortes blends Godello grapes from several plots in the Bibei Valley at some 680 meters and higher from old vines at least 40 years of age on granitic soils rich in sand. The vines are farmed organically and following the biodynamical calendar. 2015 was a warm, dry and early harvest, with some rains one week after the harvest started, which helped to achieve a good ripeness. After a short skin maceration in the press, the juice was put to ferment in 500-liter French oak barrels with indigenous yeasts. The wine matured on the fine lees in those barrels for some six months. The vintages since 2012 have gained in precision, using less new oak and working with a lot more care to look after the barrels, and the wines are a lot more elegant and fresher than they were in their initial vintages. In the past, a warm vintage like 2015 could have resulted in a warmer and oakier wine, but tasting it now it feels like a cool year! There are floral aromas, and it has power and elegance, balance and freshness, with all that is needed to develop in bottle for a long time. I tasted it next to the 2014, and there are just minor, minor differences; 2015 is slightly more powerful, but the quality level is very similar. This is a superb year for As Sortes. Bravo! 20,800 bottles were filled in July 2016.