From the three 2012 Mencías my favorite is the 2012 Gotin del Risc Mencía, which is sourced from different vineyards on clay and slate soils and is quite aromatic with notes of violets and wild berry fruit with hints of sweet spices. The palate is medium-bodied, with abundant, slightly grainy tannins that would feel softer with food. There's a good intensity with flavors lifted by the alcohol.

The 2011 Gotin del Risc Mencia is sourced from eight plots at 700 meters altitude, over clay and slate. It is aged in French barrels, 40% of them new, for between nine to fourteen months. It is smoky and serious, without the touch of sweetness found in some of its siblings. Brambly on the nose, a little wild, with lots of character, slightly Burgundian if you like. The wood is well integrated, with the fruit in the forefront. It still has a little tannin in the finish, which should get polished with a few months in bottle. Drink 2014-2017. Bodega del Abad is a family winery created in 1999 and owned by Adriana Ulibarri. She owns 25 hectares of vineyards and controls a further 15 from suppliers. The work in their vineyards follows biodynamic principles. Only wild yeasts are used, and the style they are looking for with light extraction and soft tannins is for wines on the elegant side. They have two different lines of wines, the Gotin del Risc line coming from higher altitude vineyards and looking for red rather than black fruit aromas, and Abad Dom Bueno and Carracedo from riper fruit coming from lower altitude and warmer vineyards. They produce a total of 270,000 bottles per year. Miguel Tienda, a native of Cordoba in Andalucia, born in a village called Dona Mencia (was he predestined to work in Bierzo?) is the winemaker here. Imported by Well Oiled Wine Company, Leesburg, VA; tel. (703) 771-1477 and Frontier Wine Imports, Dover, NJ; tel. (973) 328-4500

The round, fresh 2010 Gotin del Risc Mencia shows more concentration and more stuffing than the 2011, but without being heavy. It has a good acid spine that keeps the freshness. Drink 2013-2018. Bodega del Abad is a family winery created in 1999 and owned by Adriana Ulibarri. She owns 25 hectares of vineyards and controls a further 15 from suppliers. The work in their vineyards follows biodynamic principles. Only wild yeasts are used, and the style they are looking for with light extraction and soft tannins is for wines on the elegant side. They have two different lines of wines, the Gotin del Risc line coming from higher altitude vineyards and looking for red rather than black fruit aromas, and Abad Dom Bueno and Carracedo from riper fruit coming from lower altitude and warmer vineyards. They produce a total of 270,000 bottles per year. Miguel Tienda, a native of Cordoba in Andalucia, born in a village called Dona Mencia (was he predestined to work in Bierzo?) is the winemaker here. Imported by Well Oiled Wine Company, Leesburg, VA; tel. (703) 771-1477 and Frontier Wine Imports, Dover, NJ; tel. (973) 328-4500

Funky and leathery, and just not all that clean or promising on the nose. In the mouth, it’s razor sharp and sour, with excess acidity, little body and piercing pie cherry and underripe raspberry flavors. The definition of a “narrow” wine.——M.S.(7/1/2011)—— 82