Maruxa Mencía 2023
One of Spain’s great native grapes of our country in its purest state
Although the D.O. Valdeorras is best known for its Godello whites, in recent years it has also been producing delightful Mencía reds. Maruxa Mencía 2023 showcases the interpretation of this grape by Vigen de Galir, a winery owned by the prestigious CVNE group. This single-varietal has an intense, earthy and minerally nose with notes of fresh red fruit and is full, fresh, enveloping and long on the palate. An excellent way of enjoying one of Spain’s best native grape varieties in its purest state.
Consumption features
Serving temperature
Consumption time
General features
Type of wine
Region
Grape variety
100% Mencía
Type of bottle
Burgundy
Capacity (cl)
75
Total acidity (g/l)
5.5
Volatile acidity (g/l)
0.45
pH
3.4
Alcohol content (% vol.)
13
General Information
Maruxa Mencía 2023, made from 100% Mencía grapes, comes from the vineyards that the winery controls in Éntoma, Valdeorras, and is in line with the concept of ‘village’ wine. It was made from grapes grown on small plots with different soil characteristics. The first to ripen are located in Val do Galir, further south (350 m), whose slate soils are conducive to earlier ripening due to the reflex effect; they are also the most minerally plots with the best Ph. The rest of the plots are cooler and later ripening, located on northern slopes above the Sil River at an altitude of between 600 m and 800 m, with more floral flavours and lower yields.
In addition, this red wine comes from a vintage, that of 2023, which produced wines with magnificent acidity and depth in the area.
The Virgen del Galir winery dates back to 2002 and was founded by José Barros García. The most influential critics were quick to recognise his work, such as Robert Parker, who in 2009 included one of his Godellos among the top 100 Spanish whites for under €25. Maruxa – the Galician spelling of María – was the name of the mother of the winery's founder.
The important Rioja-based CVNE group acquired this firm in 2017 with the aim of giving it the definitive boost towards the top of the Galician wine scene. The Virgen del Galir winery is located in Entoma, in O Barco de Valdeorras, in the east of the province of Ourense, and its vines grow on terraces at an altitude of more than 600 metres above sea level and with a 40% slope. It produces red wines from Mencía and white wines from Godello.
Maruxa Mencía 2023 (D.O. Valdeorras) is ideal with baked turbot.
The winery
The origin of the winery Virgen del Galir (2002) is entirely family-based: it was founded by José Barros García who, together with his son David, has championed for years the magic of Valdeorras wines, both those made from godello and the -rarer- reds from mencía. The excellent work of the Barros family (in 2009 Robert Parker included one of their godellos in the top 100 best Spanish white wines under €25 and awarded it 90 points) caught the attention of the CVNE Group, which acquired the winery in 2017 with the aim of giving it the definitive push towards the pinnacle of Galician wines.
The Virgen del Galir winery is located in Éntoma, in O Barco de Valdeorras, in the eastern part of the province of Ourense. There it has 40 hectares of vineyards planted on terraces at over 600 m altitude, some of them old and inherited from previous generations of the Barros family.