Las Gundiñas, La Vizcaina de Vinos, Bierzo, 2017
Las Gundinas is routinely the most sensual and flashy of the La Vizcaina crus, exuding soft ripe fruit, sweeter truffley aromas with hints of smoke and forest fruit liqueur. Combining both breadth and depth on the palate, it is fuller bodied and more immediately generous with sumptuous creamy tannins. The flatter topography here, clay soils and a south east exposition means that Las Gundinas never struggles for ripeness, yielding a very generous and easy-going wine. Las Gundinas is one of Raul’s lower single vineyards, located at (just!) 500m of elevation. Aged for 1 year in used 225L barrique, 100% whole bunch fermented and kept for 60-90 days on the skins.
critic reviews
Brilliant ruby. Dark berries, cherry, potpourri and licorice aromas are complemented by pungent floral and smoky mineral accents. Deep and chewy on the palate, offering cassis, bitter cherry, floral pastille and fruitcake flavors supported by a core of juicy acidity. A smoky nuance appears on the long, dark-fruit-driven finish, where slowly building tannins provide shape and final grip.
La Gundinas is the wine that shows the most differences between 2017 and 2018. The 2017 La Vizcaina Las Gundinas is dark and concentrated, a wine of sun, while the 2018 is delicate and feels like a mini Bonnes Mares! This is quite like a Cornasmeaty, juicy, a little reticent and powerful, with abundant tannins. This is one wine that behaves better in 2017 than in 2016. This is a plot that has ups and down; it might be more regular in the future, as they finally bought it in 2018. Some 5,500 bottles produced. It was bottled in May 2019.