Baltos 2005 - "Mineral, crushed flowers, black olive, dark fruit and herbs carry the hefty bouquet toward a round, earthy and fully packed palate that offers accents of cured meat, leather, creamy oak and some heat. It’s definitely a big wine that’s warm on the finish, but not tannic. - 89 Points"
Michael Schachner, Wine Enthusiast, 2007-11-00

This is a new winery, formed just in time for the 2000 harvest. Winemaker Amancio Fernandez, a Bierzo native, oversees the winery's nearly 17,000-case annual production, 90 percent of which is red, from the Mencia grape. This wine undergoes its malolactic fermentation in barrel, and spends an additional four to six months in oak before being bottled. 10,000 cases made..   (more info)

Baltos 2005 - "Mineral, crushed flowers, black olive, dark fruit and herbs carry the hefty bouquet toward a round, earthy and fully packed palate that offers accents of cured meat, leather, creamy oak and some heat. It’s definitely a big wine that’s warm on the finish, but not tannic. - 89 Points"
Michael Schachner, Wine Enthusiast, 2007-11-00

This is a new winery, formed just in time for the 2000 harvest. Winemaker Amancio Fernandez, a Bierzo native, oversees the winery's nearly 17,000-case annual production, 90 percent of which is red, from the Mencia grape. This wine undergoes its malolactic fermentation in barrel, and spends an additional four to six months in oak before being bottled. 10,000 cases made..

Background information:

El Bierzo is a widening of the Sil River Valley ringed by snowcapped peaks. It is said that a rather substantial lake existed in ancient times, drained by the Romans to access the mineral riches beneath its waters (Las Médulas, the ruins of one of the largest gold mining operations in the Roman Empire, is an International Patrimony). On the frontier between Castilla y León and Galicia, Bierzo's climate is typified by a mixture of Continental and Atlantic influence, at relatively high altitude. Soils are mineral, with slate and quartzite predominating. El Bierzo's predominant local variety is the Mencía, descended from grapes brought by the Roman settlers and widely regarded as the immediate precursor to the Cabernet Franc. Nearly all of the vines are over 30 years old, with a preponderance of vines over 100 years old.
  (less info)