The nose of the 2022 La Faraona is an explosion of flowers and wild herbs, with an herbal side to it, really impressive and very Burgundian, with the Chambolle perfume and elegance. This year, exceptionally, La Faraona was harvested before Moncerbal and Las Lamas, something that has never happened in the past, when it was harvested even two weeks after, as this is a lot higher in altitude. So, it's a year full of contradictions. So far, this is amazing, reminiscent of a grand cru Burgundy. There are more bottles this year—almost 2,000—so the prices are going to go down a little. It feels very clean, harmonious and ready. The idea right now is to bottle it in three or four months. The sample is not oaky at all and is drinking nicely.

The pale and delicate 2020 La Faraona is the lowest in alcohol at 13.5% and is more reductive than its siblings—flinty and faintly smoky. It needs breathing, so it might be a good idea to decant it in advance if you're going to open a bottle any time soon. What's important is that the palate is terribly balanced, with lots of ultra fine tannins, silky, soft, full of flavors, elegant, complex and nuanced. It has lots of inner energy and tension, and it's subtle and ethereal. The finish is full of sweet red fruit and violets, nicely balanced by the tannins and the acidity. It's delicious and should develop nicely in bottle and drink well throughout its life. It's hard to compare with previous vintages, as this is more delicate than any previous years. It's a different style but every bit as good as 2019. The vineyard is 85% Mencía and the rest other varieties; when they bought the vineyard, it was 50% white grapes, and they have slowly been replanting and regrafting it, looking after every single plant. It's a half hectare at the top of the slope, at 975 meters in altitude, one of the highest vineyards in Bierzo. Like Moncerbal and Las Lamas, La Faraona is certified organic starting in 2020. Bravo! 1,400 bottles were filled in October 2021.

The 2019 La Faraona comes from the vineyard called El Ferro in the village of Corullón, 0.55 hectares on very steep slopes at 800 to 860 meters in altitude. Like all of their vineyards, it's farmed organically and biodynamically, and they picked the grapes on September 23 and fermented them partly destemmed in oak vats with indigenous yeasts and manual punching down for 47 days. The wine matured in barrel for nine to 10 months. Despite Moncerbal being very showy and floral and almost stealing the show, the depth, complexity and nuance of this 2019 La Faraona is amazing. The palate is a little stiff at this early stage; Ricardo Pérez Palacios made the comparison with the 2010 and 2011 vintages that needed some time in bottle to blossom. There were 1,459 bottles, 77 magnums, 12 double magnums, eight Jeroboams and one Salmanazar produced.

The often-mysterious and ever-changing 2018 La Faraona comes from the vineyard called El Ferro, a very special plot ("I personally prune each single vine from La Faraona," Ricardo once told me. "She's mine!") of only 0.55 hectares that probably has 8% white grapes of the Godello and Jerez varieties. The vines are 72 years old on a very steep southeast-facing slope at 800 to 860 meters in altitude, and there is a tectonic fault that crosses the land and brings an unusual combination of elements and very shallow soils with the mother rock barely 30 centimeters down. The partly destemmed grapes fermented with indigenous yeasts in an oak vat, and the wine matured in foudre and barrique for 12 months. The perfume coming out of the glass was simply mind-boggling, a subtle and complex combination of flowers, herbs and spices that had taken me to different places (often the Loire) in the past, but this time it took me to the green and humid slopes of the Bierzo, the wet soils and the Atlantic smell of the ferns and moss. This is the most Atlantic of the 2018s. It has freshness and lightness but also lots of energy and light. It has great purity, a very strong sense of place, and it encapsulates the humid slopes of Corullón like no other. This is nothing short of amazing. Ricardo told me this has been the only vintage of La Faraona where the wine was harmonious all the way, starting from the grapes, which gives me an idea of a wine that is going to show and drink nicely throughout its life. It's different from the 2014, which was from a cooler year, but this is every bit as good. 1,666 bottles, 54 magnums, 10 double magnums and six jeroboams were filled the 22nd of January 2020. They've been regrafting a good percentage of the white vines to red for eight years.

The level of precision, harmony, elegance and nuance of the 2017 La Faraona was amazing. The nose reminded me of the 2014, with a Cabernet Franc-like herbal characteristic that gave it an austere side. It was also very spicy, with notes of dry leaves and black tea. It has superb balance, great intensity and pure, focused and clean flavors. The tannins are refined for what the vineyards tend to deliver, and it finishes very spicy. This has enormous potential.