It's time for whites, wine lovers. Photos: A.C.y Y.O.A.
The diversity of Spanish whites has widened considerably in recent years both geographically and in terms of winemaking styles. As producers master techniques (ageing under lees, skin contact…) and resort to different ageing vessels, they are starting to discover what works best in each case. In the finest examples, refined winemaking drives the expression of terroir.
Based in Orduña, Gure Ahaleginak (“our own effort” in Basque) is a small family winery. The town is part of Bizkaia province but it lies geographically in the Ayala valley, so it has the same continental influence found in the neighbouring txakoli from Álava. In fact, the Gure Ahaleginak vineyards are equipped with anti-frost systems. Made from Hondarrabi Zuri, Mirene is an acronym of Miren + Irene, the owners’ daughters. The wine is fermented with skins for 20 days in barrels, then aged for 12 months, half in oak, the other half in stainless steel tanks. While the clean, subtle, floral nose doesn’t make you think of skins or oak, the palate has excellent acidity. Production is limited to 2,000 bottles, but the wine can be bought at the winery’s website for €15. Curious wine lovers should try Filoxera (€12), a true Atlantic red wine produced with a small amount of vines planted by accident.
Although wine growing in Cantabria (northern Spain) is almost insignificant, we love this white that tastes of the place where grapes come from and brings in the salty character of vines overlooking the Cantábrico Sea. Miradorio grows eight hectares in Ruiloba, on the western coast of the province, very close to the holiday destination of Comillas. They are distributed in several north-facing plots, with gradients exceeding 35% and less than one kilometre from the coast. Only white, fresh climate grape varieties are used: Hondarrabi Zuri, which can be considered indigenous to the area, plus Albariño, Godello and Riesling. The wine, which was aged with its lees for six months, blends all four. Despite working with young vines planted between 2014 and 2018, the wine reaches 13% abv. and has a neatly defined profile: floral and citrus, savoury despite its relatively light body and marked saltiness that adds character. The label is really polished too. Hopefully those visiting the region this summer can get a taste of it. 10,000 bottles. €16.
The second vintage of this Galician wine, made by Pago de los Capellanes from Ribera del Duero, is a ripe, opulent Godello with 14% abv. which manages to keep its balance. Fully ripe grapes are sourced from several small plots on slate soils in Córgomo, a parish of Villamartín de Valdeorras, on the northern bank of the river Sil. The wine is fermented and aged for eight months with its lees in a myriad of containers: stainless steel vats, an egg-shaped concrete tank, a French oak foudre and 500-litre acacia barrels. It is a deep, concentrated wine with white and stone fruit aromas over an herbal background and enveloping creaminess. The warm nuances are offset by the wine’s depth, the slate’s mineral edge and a very long finish. It will be worth seeing how it develops in bottle. Proof that relatively high-priced Godellos are finding their place in the market. 3,030 bottles produced. €35.
Many of our wine recommendations are driven by novelty and trends, but we also like to include classic names, particularly when they sing as beautifully as this Albariño. The wine is named after an admiral of the Spanish navy who gained notoriety in the 16th century for the use of galleons in naval battles. Grapes are sourced from the oldest vines on the upper part of the Tremoedo estate that surrounds the winery, just 3km from the coastal village of Cambados. Here, soils are poorer, yields lower and vines enjoy optimal sun exposure. There is no oak in the wine: instead, it is aged with its lees for 12 months in stainless steel tanks. The wine offers a pure, outstanding expression of Albariño with well-defined fruit and complex aromas (fennel, stone fruit, honeyed nuances and some saltiness), a superb combination of acidity and volume on the palate and fine length. It could be the star of a special meal this summer, but I would lay down some bottles too. €24.
Although Ontañón is present in Rueda and Ribera del Duero with Vetiver and Dominio de la Abadesa respectively, the Rioja producer has replicated in these areas the model of premium, carefully labelled wines with some historical research that proved so successful with Queirón in Rioja. The new project in Castilla y León is called Ripa Dorii (the Latin term for the banks of the Duero) and is exclusively sourced from their very own vineyards. The premium range, called Geografías Líquidas (Liquid Geographies) comes from two different sites. We particularly liked the white wine, made from a vineyard in Rueda on pebble soils at 750m elevation. Fermented and aged for six months in 80% stainless steel and 20% in oak, the wine displays restrained aromas, with hints of stone and white fruit, has good structure, length and a saline finish. 6,000 bottles. €16.
At over 70 years old, Basilio Izquierdo is so full of energy and enthusiasm that he seems to be closer to Rioja's younger producers than to his contemporaries. This summer, he celebrated the 15th anniversary of his solo project after leaving Cvne. We tasted some excellent age-worthy wines, but this skin-contact white did not go unnoticed. Curiously enough, he makes it with the last portion of must left after the first pressing (free-run juice) that goes to his top B de Basilio and the second one destined to Acodo. The remaining wine is partially fermented with skins for a few days. Despite the relatively short time of skin contact, it achieves the intensity of colour, herbal character and the additional structure associated to orange wines. Moreover, it is fresh, balanced and even elegant. Grape varieties are the same he uses for his other whites: Garnacha Blanca and Viura. At €26, is not cheap but we are positive that a discerning wine lover will appreciate the skilled hand and the complex nuances that Basilio Izquierdo brings to his wines.
The Aragón-born producer Luis Oliván sources Malvar grapes from San Martín de Valdeiglesias in Sierra de Gredos and makes this wine at the cooperative in Arganda, further east, with no DO seal on the label. This is a single-vineyard wine from a trellised plot planted in 1983. As Malvar is an early ripening variety with high alcohol potential, he tries to pick grapes early. Bunches are destemmed and left to ferment in stainless steel tanks in contact with the skins for 40 days. The wine is then aged in seasoned 600-litre barrels for six months. While the oak rounds the wine, the skins lend wild, exotic aromas and Malvar’s distinctive unctuousness lightens the tannic, bitter finish of some orange wines. Picking was done at the right time, hence the fresh acidity that balances the palate beautifully. Undoubtedly, this original white is a great introduction to low-intervention wines. Production is very limited (only 1,025 bottles), but at €14, it is really affordable.
Here’s another orange wine – we love Moscatel when the skins add a bit of rock ‘n’ roll! The grape’s characteristic aromas broaden and gain nuances and some structure on the palate. This is an almost experimental wine (only 899 bottles were produced), but it says a lot about the young winemaker behind it. The fourth generation of a saga of bulk producers, Óscar Mestre started tinkering around in the garage of his family in 2018. He wanted to explore the potential of the varieties and vineyards grown in Alicante's Xaló valley and Bernia mountainous range. Mestre now produces around 15,000 bottles distributed across several brands and made from the area's two signature varieties; the red Giró (his fruit-driven, medium-bodied Óscar Mestre Giró 2019 is a pleasant, friendly introduction to the variety) and Moscatel. To produce Insurrecte, skins were left to ferment in uncoated clay jars for five days, then the wine was aged for six months to develop a veil of yeasts in the final stage of the process. Despite the relative short time of skin contact, there is good weight on the palate and the wilderness (aromatic herbs, orange peel) one would expect from orange wines, yet it remains faithful to the character of Moscatel. A well-conceived, well-crafted wine. €18.50.
This old vine Garnacha Blanca made by the Bot cooperative in Tarragona offers outstanding value. Grapes are sourced from some of the best vineyards of their associates planted prior to the vine restructuration that took place in the 1980s. The name (the fourth) refers to the next generation of members who will have to take baton and ensure business continuity. In this vintage, 13 plots distributed in little more than 4ha made their way into the blend. Most of them are planted in sand and clay-limestone soils in the village of Bot and to a lesser extent in Gandesa and Horta de Sant Joan. The wine was fermented and aged with its lees for eight months in stainless steel tanks. It later spent nine months in bottle, so it is regarded as a second-year white. The lees bring a certain creaminess that enhances the unctuous quality of Garnacha Blanca, yet there is enough acidity for the wine to be balanced. Seamless, informative label. 6,214 bottles. €10.
Avgvstvs Forum is in El Vendrell (Tarragona, Baix Penedès), very close to the tourist beaches of Comarruga and Sant Salvador. This wine is part of their experimental range of micro-vinifications. Grapes are sourced form a very old vineyard next to the winery with views to the Mediterranean. The wine is fermented in French oak and aged in stainless steel tanks for 12 months, but the point here is to show Xarel.lo’s good ageing potential. Initial, fine reductive aromas of stone fruit, quince and dried herbs and a savoury and sapid palate -the sea breeze probably contributes to this quality. Only 1,500 bottles were produced but the price (€14) is really generous for a seven-year-old wine -one of those great finds that are still available in Spain.
