The Albariño “Cies” bottling from Rodrigo Mendez is produced from vines planted in 1954 and fermented with indigenous yeasts. Half of the cuvée is fermented in ancient wood vats, without temperature control, and the other...
The Albariño “Cies” bottling from Rodrigo Mendez is produced from vines planted in 1954 and fermented with indigenous yeasts. Half of the cuvée is fermented in ancient wood vats, without temperature control, and the other half in stainless steel, with both halves seeing some extended lees contact. The 2018 Cies offers up a fine nose of grapefruit, limepeel, ocean breeze, lemongrass and a good base of soil tones. On the palate the wine is crisp, full-bodied and well-balanced, with a fine core, good focus and grip and a long, nascently complex finish. With part of the bottling aged in older vats, it is more structured than many young Albariños and seems likely to age long and gracefully. It is quite approachable now, but my gut instinct is that it will blossom with a year or two in the cellar. Good juice.