Descendientes de J. Palacios

The vast viticultural landscape of Spain is a treasure trove of amazing, old-vine, indigenous varietal vineyards that dot the countryside in all corners of this vast and diverse country. In the 1990s, you have people like Alvaro Palacios who started a revolution in Spanish Wine that continues to this day. In 1998, Alvaro partnered with his nephew, Ricardo Perez, who had just finished his enological studies in Bordeaux and had done internships and harvest work with Christian Moueix and at Chateau Margaux. At the time, the two pretty much had “pick of the litter” for vineyards in Bierzo, and settled on an area on the western edge of the region near the tiny village of Corullòn. 

Alvaro and Ricardo’s first vintage was 1999, and they decided to name the winery after Alvaro’s father and Ricardo’s grandfather, José Palacios, who had passed away in early 2000, soon after they had made their first harvest. Two years later, in 2001, they decided that the best of these plots had true Grand Cru potential, so they decided to vinify and bottle them separately. These historic vineyards, San Martin, Moncerbal, Las Lamas, and La Faraona are still produced today and tell the true story of Bierzo and its ability to make unique, compelling, and age-worthy wines. That same year, in 2001, they also decided to produce an “everyday Bierzo” that could showcase this unique varietal, but at a more affordable price point.

Today, Descendientes has a total of 35 Hectares of vineyards, mostly very old vines, and often in very tiny plots. As in Priorat, Alvaro and Ricardo gravitated early on towards a more natural approach in the vineyards in Bierzo. Today, all of their estate vineyards are farmed biodynamically. Beyond that, Ricardo Perez has become one of Spain’s foremost experts in biodynamic viticulture, often consulting with other wineries across the country. 

It is amazing to contemplate the evolution that has occurred at Descendientes since its inception in 1999. It is a great success story and we look forward to the next chapters for Perez and Palacios in the years to come!