Álvaro
Palacios and Descendientes de J. Palacios - New Releases

BY NEAL MARTIN |&nbsp;APRIL 03, 2023I
covered Spain in a professional capacity for Robert Parker just over ten years
ago, and though my tenure was brief, the country made a big impression – the
landscape, people, gastronomy and, of course, its wines. En route to another recent
tasting in London, I made a short detour to Berry Brothers &amp; Rudd to reacquaint
myself with one of Spain’s most esteemed winemakers, Álvaro Palacios. Together
with his nephew, Ricardo Pérez, they showed their 2022s from their vineyards in
Rioja, Priorat and Bierzo.

Just to
recap, Álvaro Palacios was born
in Rioja, and his family owns Bodega Palacios Remondo. Naturally, Palacios was
expected to one day step into his father’s shoes. But he had an adventurous
spirit and wanted to furrow his own path. Palacios spent a couple of years
working at Petrus in Bordeaux before buying his first vineyard, Finca Dofi, in
1990. Three years later, he acquired a steep north-east facing parcel
cultivated by vines planted between 1900 and 1940 that he named L’Ermita,
becoming the first vineyard to use the Gran Vinya Classificada qualification.
It soon became one of Spain’s most iconic and coveted wines. In the following
years, Palacios was instrumental in reinvigorating the Priorat region and
bringing it to global attention, building a small portfolio of highly-regarded
single vineyard wines using indigenous varieties, Garnacha and Cariñena
(Samsó), as well as applying organic viticulture. He also began a joint venture
with Perez in 1998, named Descendientes de J. Palacios, to exploit the potential
of Bierzo.

I will
let the tasting notes speak for themselves. I was reminded of the elegance of
Palacios’s wines, perhaps more so than when I was tasting them regularly a
decade ago. These terroir-driven wines benefit from aeration, so I took my time
tasting them and allowing them to open. Though familiar with L’Ermita, I was
taken with the La Faraona, virtually pure Mencia that blossomed in the glass.<img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.vinous.com/uploads%2F1680531323729-palacios+2022.jpg">The 2022
Quiñon de Valmira, Perez’s wine from Eastern Rioja, is a blend of 85%
Garnacha and a mixture of other varieties, cropped at 14.5hL/ha. It has a light,
airy bouquet with black fruit, chimney soot and subtle sea spray scents. The
palate is medium-bodied with a smooth and velvety opening. Plush tannins,
lightly spiced, fresh and focused with a twist of bitter cherry and soy towards
the finish. This is going to be very seductive. I adore its seamlessness. 93/Drink
2024-2038. 

Moving
on to his wines from the region of Priorat, the 2022 Gratallops has a
fragrant bouquet with brambly red fruit, pressed iris and background scents of powdered
stone. The palate is well-balanced with a pleasing granular texture. With gentle
grip and a finely pitched acidity, this could almost be described as a “laid
back” Priorat, which is not written pejoratively. Unassuming might be a more
accurate word. It fans out discretely in the finish, but at the end of the day,
it just says, “Drink me”! 90/Drink 2023-2033.

The 2022
Finca Dofi comprises 88% Garnacha with Cariñena, Picapoli and a pinch of
white varieties. It sports a well-defined bouquet with blackberry, raspberry
and light pencil shaving scents, focused and understated, later unfurling
temptingly with aeration. The palate is medium-bodied with fine grip, bright
and vivid with black cherries, hints of blueberry and a dab of allspice. Sedate
and alluring, it feels reassuringly persistent on the finish. Lovely. 92/Drink
2024-2040.

The 2022
La Baixada comes from 1.3 hectares planted with 98% Garnacha and 2%
Cariñena. It is a little more opulent compared to the Finca Dofi: well-defined,
high-toned black cherries, Medjool dates, blackcurrant pastille scents and an
underlying tertiary element that emerges with time. The palate is medium-bodied
with a more Mediterranean personality than other cuvées, yet it retains
admirable balance, just a touch more pliancy and sumptuousness towards the
finish. It slips down the throat almost too easily! 91/Drink 2024-2040.

The 2022
Les Aubaguetes is a blend of 86% Garnacha, 13% Cariñena and 1% of white
varieties. It is cut from a different cloth from the preceding La Baixada. This
is backward, sultry and standoffish at first, opening reluctantly with
aeration, with dark berry fruit, melted tar and candied orange peel hints. The
palate is medium-bodied with fine-boned tannins. Classic in style, not austere
but with a fine backbone, this is a Priorat that deserves time in the cellar.
Not completely unapproachable since there is underlying elegance, yet one feels
it is hiding something up its sleeve to reward the patient oenophile. 94/Drink
2028-2048.

The 2022
L’Ermita is Palacios’s crown jewel, this vintage comprising 92% Garnacha,
7% Cariñena and 1% white varieties. It is clearly a step up from the Les
Aubaguetes with intense, multi-faceted black fruit, freshly rolled tobacco,
black pepper and wild mint hints. It uncoils seductively with time in the glass
while retaining wonderful delineation and focus. The palate is utterly divine
with saturated yet filigree tannins, perfect balance and a gentle, almost
subtle crescendo with a peacock’s tail of mineral-driven black fruit on the
finish. Fabulous and as sophisticated as they come. Utterly divine. 96/Drink
2030-2060.

Finishing
with a quartet of wines from Bierzo with the Mencía grape variety at its heart,
these wines are under the Descendientes de J. Palacios label. The 2022 Villa
de Corullón has a pretty blueberry and cassis-tinged bouquet, quite pure,
though I would like a bit more horsepower. The palate is medium-bodied with
saturated tannins, balsamic and licorice-infused black fruit with a sweet
finish that just needs a little more amplitude. 88/Drink 2023-2030.

The 2022
Moncerbal comes from 2.1 hectares of vines planted with 95% Mencia and the
remainder white Jerez. It has a vibrant nose with black cherries, raspberry
coulis and light leathery scents. Just a little VA gives it a welcome kick. The
palate is medium-bodied with grippy tannins. It’s firm in the mouth with good
density and a weighty finish that (again) needs to muster a little more
precision. 89/Drink 2023-2033.

The 2022
Las Lamas, a blend of 92% Mercian and 8% white Jerez, has a well-defined
bouquet with blackberry, wild strawberry, singed leather and undergrowth scents;
rosemary and clove touches come through with time. The palate is medium-bodied and
harmonious with smooth tannins, light spice, baking powder and allspice mixed
with white pepper towards the finish. This is a level up from the Moncerbal and
should give 12-15 years of drinking pleasure. 93/Drink 2024-2036.

The 2022
La Faraona comes from 0.55 hectares of vine, 98% Mencia with a little white
Jerez and Godello, cultivated at 1,000m at the summit of the Corullón hill. It
has an almost feral nose, animal fur and antique leather armchair infusing
the dark berry fruit. This is fairly backward and needs time to open, yet there
is an alluring, almost enigmatic tincture to the aromatics. The palate is medium-bodied
with fine grip, good density and delineation; the acidity counterbalances the
density and muscle. Showing a firm backbone, there’s a little austerity towards
the finish with a residual black pepper and clove note. Excellent. 96/Drink
2026-2050.

Reacquainting
myself with these wines brought back many happy memories of tasting in the
region. It is a shame that commitments to Bordeaux and Burgundy means that I
could only make a fleeting return. At least I can still content myself by drinking
its wines, especially when they are as good as this.© 2023, Vinous. No portion of this article may be copied, shared or re-distributed without prior consent from Vinous. Doing so is not only a violation of our copyright, but also threatens the survival of independent wine criticism.<hr> You Might Also Enjoy<a target="_blank" href="https://vinous.com/articles/myth-over-matter-mature-burgundy-1920-2019-mar-2023">Myth Over Matter: Mature Burgundy 1920-2019</a>, Neal Martin, March 2023 <a target="_blank" href="https://vinous.com/articles/lower-your-sails-or-breeches-beychevelle-1929-2019-mar-2023">Lower Your Sails (Or Breeches): Beychevelle 1929-2019</a>, Neal Martin, March 2023 <a target="_blank" href="https://vinous.com/articles/not-classed-but-classy-haut-bergeron-1961-2019-mar-2023">Not Classed, but Classy: Haut-Bergeron 1961-2019</a>, Neal Martin, March 2023 <a target="_blank" href="https://vinous.com/articles/atlantic-spain-it-s-always-about-the-weather-jun-2021">Atlantic Spain: It’s Always About the Weather…</a>, Josh Raynolds, June 2021

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