Rafael Palacios - As Sortes Val Do Bibei Valdeorras 2021 (750ml)
 
WA
96

Price: $55.00

Producer Rafael Palacios
Country Spain
Region Galicia
Varietal Godello
Vintage 2021
Sku 8934
Size 750ml

Wine Advocate: 96 Points

The super elegant and austere 2021 As Sortes has a sense of harmony and subtleness that is moving. I found great purity precision and symmetry in the wine. It has marked granite sensations in the palate; it's very tasty long fine-grained and textured with the cold texture of the year. Palacios compared 2021 with 2012 which was very cold and dry before the harvest. It has to be one of the most elegant vintages of As Sortes. I went back to visit Rafa Palacios in Valdeorras which I had not done for a decade. He has expanded his winery which now looks state of the art and of course his vineyards close to 40 hectares even though he still buys grapes from local growers. In 2022 he processed 400000 kilos of grapes. We went to the vineyards did a good tasting and discussed the latest vintages. He's one of the finest white wine producers in Galicia and in Spain. 2021 was a cooler year lighter wines with freshness but even though 2022 was a warm year the wines kept freshness that he cannot explain. As for 2023 it has been a very challenging year with a heat wave that burnt some of the grapes a long harvest after a turn of the weather with abundant rains that brought some challenges. In 2024 he will do his 20th harvest in Valdeorras and the 20th vintage of As Sortes. The wines have freshness and saline minerality that often transcend the vintage and even the variety because of the high altitude of O Bolo and the decomposed sandy granite soils. Published: Nov 16 2023