Ramón Bilbao turns to Godello with Godeval purchase in Valdeorras

The wine industry has its eyes on white wine. This week, Ramón Bilbao, the wine division of Zamora Company, announced the acquisition of Godeval, a key producer in the recovery of Godello and in establishing Valdeorras as one of Spain’s leading white wine regions. The purchase price has not been disclosed.

Minority shareholders who remain in the Galician company include founders Honorato López Isla, a businessman from Santa Cruz (O Bolo) with a long career in the electricity and telecommunications sectors and the driving force behind Godeval's transformation into a limited company in 2016; and José Luis Bartolomé. Araceli Fernández, the daughter of  co-founder Horacio Fernández Presa who passed away in 2013, also holds a stake. She has been at the helm of the winery since 2006.

The acquisition strengthens Ramón Bilbao's strategy of expanding its range of white wines, adding a Godello to its Mar de Frades Albariños from Rías Baixas and the Ramón Bilbao Verdejos from Rueda. “Some time ago, we realised that we needed to incorporate white wines into our portfolio. It was no longer an option to focus solely on red wines from Rioja and Ribera del Duero,” says managing director Rodolfo Bastida.

Ramón Bilbao has been present in Rías Baixas since 2003 and in Rueda since 2010. White wines currently account for around 20% of the company's total production, both in volume and value. Godeval now represents between 4% and 5% of its overall white wine output.

"The future looks white, to a certain extent,” says Bastida. "Our long-term projections suggest red wines will lose some ground, but not significantly. We don’t foresee a radical shift from red to white, but the trend has certainly accelerated faster than we expected in some markets, such as Latin America."

Godeval also represents a commitment to premiumisation, given the relatively high prices of Valdeorras whites. For Bastida, having vineyard holdings was also key, as Godeval controls nearly 50 hectares of owned and rented plots. "At Mar de Frades, we will soon exceed 100 hectares, and we are very happy with them. It is becoming increasingly difficult to persuade growers to follow viticultural guidelines. Today, the best wines come from your own vineyards."

Since 2015, Bastida has regularly visited Galician wine regions with the group's R&D director, Rosana Lisa, and Mar de Frades' technical director, Paula Fandiño. "Valdeorras struck us as the most interesting region for Godello, with its unique vineyards and soils. In our blind tastings, these whites consistently came out on top. We approached Godeval earlier this year, and last Tuesday, we signed the purchase agreement in Madrid," explains Ramón Bilbao's CEO.

Godeval is regarded as the cradle of Godello, and its founder, Horacio Fernández Presa, as the saviour of the variety. In the 1970s, while heading the Agricultural Extension Agency in O Barco, Fernández Presa launched the Revival Plan to rescue Godello, which was on the brink of extinction in Valdeorras. Together with José Luis Bartolomé, an Agricultural Extension technician, and other partners, they produced the first Viña Godeval —an acronym for Godello de Valdeorras— in the 1986 vintage. Since 2022, Ana Bartolomé, José Luis' daughter, has been in charge of winemaking. Ramón Bilbao plans to maintain the current team. The group will also continue producing Godello at Mar de Frades -a limited-production white in a distinctly different, saline style.  

Ramón Bilbao is not the first major Spanish wine group to establish a foothold in Valdeorras. Pago de los Capellanes, from Ribera del Duero, produced released O Luar de Sil, its first Godello from Valdeorras, in the 2014 vintage, and Cvne, from Rioja, acquired Virgen del Galir in O Barco in 2018. Many outsiders have contributed significantly to building the region's prestige. Rafael Palacios quickly won international acclaim with his As Sortes wine, while Telmo Rodríguez and Pablo Eguzkiza, of Ladeiras do Xil, revealed the potential of the Bibei Valley's for red wines. Jorge Ordóñez has had his own project in the area since 2009 (Bodegas Avancia) and introduced the first Godello to the US market in the early 1990s as the importer of Godeval.