Valdeorras: our selection of red wines

Shadowed by Godello's success, red wines from Valdeorras enjoy considerably less visibility than their white counterparts. Yet this does not prevent the area from producing some remarkable examples.

Mencía is the region's signature red variety. Tempranillo, locally known as Arauxa, is also grown, alongside two tannic and powerful varieties: Garnacha Tintorera (Alicante Bouschet) and Sousón. Other varieties include Mouratón, Gran Negro, Caíño Tinto and Brancellao, albeit their presence is limited. The latter, a late-ripening variety with excellent acidity, is particularly well adapted to climate change. Espadeiro and Ferrón are also authorised, although they do not figure in the DO's vineyard data.

Currently, Gran Negro, Mouratón and Garnacha Tintorera are considered secondary varieties, although the latter still holds an important position in the region. With 140 hectares under vine, many of them old, it ranks as the second most widely planted red variety after Mencía, which covers 180 hectares.

The fact that some of the area's best reds are field blends from old vineyards should encourage the production of red blends in future. Another key area deserving further exploration is the region's terroirs, given the wide diversity of soils, elevations and exposures. 

This selection aims to showcase the different styles and ranges of Valdeorras reds based on what we tasted at the Regulatory Board and in wineries during our visit to the area last month.

Different styles of Mencía

Casal Novo Mencía 2024 Red. Adega O Casal was founded by five partners in 2000, producing both white and red wines. This well-ripened Mencía displays Atlantic freshness, enhanced by herbal and forest notes, and a certain rusticity that lends it authenticity and character —very much in the style you would expect from a local Galician red.

Score: 89. 13% abv. €11 

Joaquín Rebolledo Mencía 2024 Red. Cheerful and fruit-driven, this Mencía bursts with aromas of bramble and wild berries. Fresh and pleasant, it offers generous fruit flavours and rounded, inviting tannins. A contemporary, relatively light red that will appeal to a wide audience. It is also worth considering its development in bottle —a 2020 vintage tasted at the winery showed even greater smoothness while retaining its fruity character and freshness.

Score: 90. 13% abv. €9 

Pedrazáis Mencía Barrica 2022 Red, Alan de Val. After 10 months of barrel ageing, the oak is beautifully integrated, allowing the variety's fragrant, herbal and strawberry character to shine through.  A moreish, vibrant and finely crafted red. The grapes come from the south-facing Pedrazáis vineyard in A Rúa, where shallow slate soils and a sandy-loam texture allow the ground to cool down quickly at night, thus preserving acidity.

Score: 90. 13.5% abv. €16 

Avancia Cuvée de O Mencía 2024 Red. This is a more complex Mencía, made from old vines planted on two different soil types: grey slate with quartz in two Vilamartín de Valdeorras plots, and alluvial deposits in one plot in O Barco. After eight months of ageing in seasoned French oak barrels, the wine rveveals ripe blackberry fruit, spices and fine toasted nuances. A wine of depth and character, with a warm-stone finish that evokes schist soils. Production is limited to 3,300 bottles.

Score: 92. 13.5% abv. €22 

Single-vineyard wines and field blends

A Villeira As Ermitas 2021 Red. This is one of two reds produced by CVNE's Virgen del Galir in the Bibei Valley. In this elevated area with distinctive granite soils, Mencíadevelops a fragrant and delicate character, enhanced by the use of stems during fermentation and moderate extraction. Complexity is added  by other varieties interplanted with Mencía: Alicante Bouschet, Brancellao, Sousón and Merenzao. The result is a wild, aromatic wine with plenty of herbal and crisp fruit notes and a lingering, perfumed finish. Villeira is a two-hectare, amphitheatre-shaped vineyard where very old vines coexist with replantings carried out 10 years ago to replace missing plants.

Score: 93. 13% abv. €36

O Cabalín Vino de Montaña 2021 Red. Here, Mencía is blended with 20% Alicante Bouschet and small amounts of other red varieties. This is the flagship wine by O Cabalín, a new project strongly focused on red wines and old vines from the easternmost part of the appellation. This elevated, slate-rich area yields red that are both firm and fresh. O Cabalín is a south-facing, early ripening slope. The wine evokes Galicia’s green landscapes with aromas  of ripe berries, strawberries and forest floor,  as well as some warm undertones.  Serious and structured, with juicy fruit, lively acidity  and a distinctive gunflint note on the finish. Production is limited to just 2,000 bottles.

Score: 93. 13% abv. €30 

Avancia Nobleza Carballedo 2023 Red. Mencía is planted alongside Alicante Bouschet, Mouratón, Gran Negro, Sousón and Cariñena. After eight months in seasoned barrels, this deep-coloured red wine displays fine herbal notes and concentrated black fruit overlaid with subtle toasted nuances. The oak adds structure and gentle smokiness without dominating, with underlying acidity balancing all elements. Remarkable ageing potential. 

Score: 94. 13.5% abv. €56 

O Cabalín Viladequinta 2021 Red. Alongside O Cabalín, the winery produces four exceptional red wines, with production ranging from 650 to 2,000 bottles each. It is difficult to choose between them, but Viladequinta stands out for its freshness and depth: perfectly ripe, vibrant fruit lifted by herbal notes and citrus-like acidity lend the wine striking verticality. It is deep and mineral, with dark stone notes reminiscent of slate soils and a remarkably long finish, showing good ageing potential.  The grapes come from three small, north-facing hillside plots at  around 750 metres elevation, all planted between 1925 and 1930 on very poor slate soils. Mencía accounts for around 40% of the blend followed by Merenzao and Garnacha Tintorera, with smaller amounts of other varieties.

Score: 94. 12.5% abv. €32 

O Cabalín Bascois 2021 Red.  Perhaps the most captivating wine in the range, with only 650 bottles produced. Bascois must be one of O Cabalín's oldest (planted in 1910) and most elevated (800 metres) vineyards, with a north-facing aspect and shallow slate soils. Mencía (40%) is joined by Merenzao (20%) and Alicante Bouschet (10%), with the remaining 30% divided among Brancellao, Gran Negro, Ferrón and Sousón. Complex and multilayered, this wine is both elusive and deep on the nose, with hints of wild berries and the spirit of the Atlantic forest. Quintessentially Galician, it offers a rare combination of firmness and elegance. A magnificent wine that avoids extremes of both power and lightness.

Score: 95. 13% abv. €40 

Beyond Mencía

Terriña Mil Ríos Barrica Merenzao 2022 Red. The Méndez Rojo group, which operates in several regions of Galicia, produces a number of single-varietal reds for Terriña's premium range in Valdeorras. This Merenzao, fermented and aged in 500-litre barrels, displays the variety's distinctive light colour, with  aromas of ripe strawberries and wild herbs. The palate feels slightly fuller than the nose suggests, yet the tannins remain moderate . It is slightly warm but faithful to the variety's character.

Score: 90. 14.5% abv. €26 

Los Carismáticos As Ermidas 2023 Red. The Merenzao from Virgen del Galir offers a markedly different profile, shaped by the decomposed granite soils and high elevation of the Bibei Valley. Light in colour, it is very fragrant, with notes of lavender, thyme and pumice stone, and hints of red fruit and leather in the background. The wine feels airy and aromatic, with lively acidity, and an elegant rather than firm palate. Captivating.

Score: 91. 13% abv. €35

Valterio María Ardoña 2022 Red. In recent years, Valdesil has gradually reduced its red wine production to focus on Godello whites. Fortunately, the winery continues to produce María Ardoña (another local name for Mencia) as part of its premium range. The Prada family revived this grape variety in the 1970s, planting a plot in Portela (Vilamartín de Valdeorras) in 1985. Fragrant and expressive, the wine combines aromas of strawberry, ripe raspberryand plenty of herbal notes. Its mineral finish, marked by warm, dark slate notes, adds length and refinement to a deep and fleshy palate. The 14.5% abv is well integrated. Fewer than 1,000 bottles were produced.

Score: 93. 14.5% abv. €46 

Alan de Val As Queimadas Caíño Longo 2021 Red. Alan de Val is one of the wineries most actively exploring the potential of Valdeorras reds, recovering and planting local varieties. We recently featured their Castes Nobres as our Wine of the Week. This Caíño, from the As Queimadas vineyard in A Rúa, is fermented in stainless steel and aged for 15 months in 500-litre oak barrels. It shows the variety’s trademark tension and herbal notes alongside good acidity. It also boasts sweet fruit, a hint of leather, and a dark, slightly earthy finish.

Score: 90. 14% abv. €33 

Terriña Mil Ríos Barrica Garnacha 2019 Red. This wine has improved with time in  bottle. Despite its deep colour, this is an approachable Alicante Bouschet, with ripe red and black fruits and polished tannins, feeling both tamed and less extracted than expected. However, the labelling may cause confusion as it lists the variety as Garnacha rather than Garnacha Tintorera (the Spanish name for Alicante Bouschet).

Score: 90. 14% abv. €23 

Alan de Val Escada Garnacha Tintureira 2022 Red. Made from some of the family's oldest vines and aged for nine months in French oak barrels, this wine  delivers the full power and concentration expected from Alicante Bouschet. It has a generous black fruit character with an almost wild quality,  gaining tension from its acidity and lingering on the finish. A wine that almost makes you jump out of your seat.

Score: 91. 15% abv. €17