Camins 2 Dreams - 'Paicines Ranch' - Mencia - San Benito County, CA - 2024

@camins2dreams

Notes from the Winery/Importer

The 2024 Mencía comes from Paicines Ranch in San Benito County, which is known for its regenerative vineyard practices. Mencía is primarily grown in the regions of Ribera Sacra and Bierzo in Spain. The Mencía harvest opened our 2024 season with the first pick at the beginning of September. The grapes where fermented with natural yeast and aged for 10 month in neutral French oak barrels. This Mencía offers an elegant aromatic profile, with floral notes of violet and rose petal complemented by dried herbs, blackberry, meaty nuances, and subtle minerality. On the palate, it is medium-bodied with firm, dry tannins and a pleasing texture, revealing savory and earthy undertones that add depth and complexity. The wine is well-balanced, showcasing a harmonious interplay between its bright floral aromas, fruit character, and subtle mineral edge.

Notes on the Producer

Camins 2 Dreams represents the routes and paths we follow to achieve our dreams. Camins 2 Dreams was founded in 2017. Our grapes are sourced from vineyards in Santa Barbara County with a focus in Sta. Rita Hills. Our philosophy is to make hand-crafted, terroir-driven wines that are fermented with natural yeast and use minimal intervention in the winery, with only minimum amounts of SO2 at bottling. Our wines are also unfined and unfiltered. We believe wine is made in the vineyard and we want to showcase the typicity of each site where the grapes come from. We source fruit from vineyards that share in the same values of respect for the land, the environment, and their workers. We work exclusively with organic, biodynamic, and regenerative vineyards. We are a team of two winemakers, Mireia Taribó and Tara Gomez, wife and wife, whose paths first crossed in 2006 through our work in the wine industry. Our friendship grew through wine and travels, which also sparked our love. Our journey of friendship, love, and wine now continues as together we found our dream winery, Camins 2 Dreams.

Grapes & Style

Mencia

Mencía is a red grape from northwest Spain, especially Bierzo, Ribeira Sacra, Valdeorras, and nearby regions. For a long time it was treated as a source of simple local reds, but old vines, hillside sites, and more precise farming have shown how expressive and elegant it can be.

In the vineyard, Mencía can make very different wines depending on site and extraction. Cooler, steep, slate-rich vineyards often produce wines with perfume, freshness, and mineral tension, while warmer or more extracted examples can become darker and more powerful.

In the glass, Mencía often shows red cherry, raspberry, pomegranate, violet, pepper, herbs, graphite, and a faintly smoky edge. The best examples land somewhere between Loire-like freshness and northern Spanish savor, with enough structure to feel serious without getting heavy.