where seagulls dare

galicia's new direction

Billed as the ultimate seafood wine, Albariño has always been more about freshness than texture – until now. And, says Susan Low, a growing interest in oak- and lees-ageing is not the only hot story from Spain’s cool north-west

Walking around Galicia’s capital, Santiago de Compostela, a recurring theme is the scallop shell; its form is carved into the decor of innumerable buildings, and it appears on countless tourist trinkets. Officially, it’s all tied in to the legend of St James, but it’s surely no coincidence that the wine for which Galicia is best known, Albariño, is such a divine match for scallops.

In fact, the grape is a peerless partner to all kinds of seafood – scallops, of course, but also mussels, percebes (a kind of barnacle), crayfish, langoustines and oysters, all of which grow in abundance in Galicia’s rías, the fjord-like inlets on the Atlantic coast that lend their name to the region’s best-known denomination, Rías Baixas. Although the wine was hardly known outside Spain until the early 1990s, Albariño’s food-friendliness and distinctive character have made it a favourite of sommeliers from Madrid to Manhattan.

Until very recently, Albariño wines could be characterised as crisp, clean, refreshing whites made for drinking young. That perception is changing as winemakers in the region experiment with oak-ageing, ageing on lees – and just plain ageing.

The Pazo de Señoráns bodega (Liberty Wines) in the northern Val do Salnés sub-zone has been around since the Rías Baixas denomination was founded in 1988. As with other producers, the focus has been on young wines since the bodega’s inception, but owner Marisol Bueno says that her winemaking approach is shifting. ‘We’re now doing more with barrel-ageing and ageing wine on lees,’ she explains. ‘In the next 10 years there will be more experimentation throughout the region.’

The original Pazo de Señoráns bottling is a classic of its type, with typical flavours of golden apples, citrus and peach, but winemaker Ana Quintela has introduced a couple of new styles: the Selección Añada, which is made from a selected parcel of grapes at the property and aged for 30 months on its lees; and the Barrica, first made in 2006, which spends four months in French and American oak. Ageing on lees gives the Añada increased depth and a more rounded, generous character, but it retains the elegance and clean finish associated with Albariño. It’s like Albariño as we know it – only more so.

AGEING GRACEFULLY

The oak-aged wine is a different kettle of fish. Quintela describes the Barrica as ‘an experiment that worked’. The aim, she says, ‘is to maintain freshness’, so the wines are fermented in stainless steel, not oak. ‘We’re using barriques (for ageing) but by not putting the wines through malolactic fermentation, it maintains the wine’s character,’ she explains.

In addition to these newbies, we also taste a wine that’s spent a relatively long time in the cellar, Pazo de Señoráns from the 2003 vintage. ‘We want to show that Albariño can age,’ says Quintela, calling into question the ‘drink young’ philosophy associated with the grape. As well as still-brisk acidity, the wine had developed some of the petrolly aromas normally associated with older Riesling.

In the next 10 years

there will be more experimentation in

the region – Marisol Bueno

At nearby Palacio de Fefiñanes (Moreno Wine), similar experiments are taking place, under the watchful gaze of consultant oenologist Cristina Mantilla and winemaker Ramón Vieites. The classic Albariño de Fefiñanes remains the kind of wine that practically screams out for a plate of raw oysters, but it has two relatively new stable-mates: III Año, which is released three years after the harvest, after extended ageing on its lees; and 1583, which is fermented in French oak.

While the lees-aged III Año has a character that’s more in keeping with the classic Albariño style, the oak-fermented wine is altogether richer, with an almost creamy texture, although it still has a clean freshness to it. As with the Barrica from Señorans, these wooded wines, though by no means in-your-face styles, may cause some Albariño fans to do a slight double-take. In a restaurant setting, they’d be better suited to cooked fish than raw, and would work well with creamy sauces.

BEYOND RIAS BAIXAS

Albariño is the best-known variety in Galicia, but not the only one grown in the region, with a host of other Spanish grapes making a name for themselves. They may not be well known yet, but then who outside Spain had heard of Albariño 20 years ago? Top of the ‘ones to watch’ list would be the Godello variety and the Valdeorras DO, inland and to the east of Rías Baixas.

Rafael Palacios may be Valdeorras’ greatest proponent. He calls this region on the banks of the River Sil ‘the best place to produce top white wines in the world’. This boast is put into perspective when you consider that he is a member of the fabled Palacios family (Alvaro Palacios, of Rioja and Ribera del Duero fame, is one of his eight brothers). His family members make some of the best wines in Spain,
and he could make wine anywhere in the world he chose to.

Palacios is clearly passionate about wine. He says that at one family dinner he tasted a 1964 Montrachet that was so delicious it made him cry. He’s devoted to white wines and can count the well-regarded white Rioja, Plácet, among his creations. ‘But,’ he says, ‘seven years working with Viura was enough,’ and he’s now turned his attentions to Godello.

His two wines, Louro do Bolo and As Sortes (George Barbier of London), are both made exclusively from Godello. The grapes, some of which come from ancient terraces aged up to nearly 90 years old, are grown on 20 tiny parcels planted on vertiginous slopes in the Val do Bibei sub-zone. Tasting the wines, it’s easy to see why some have referred to Valdeorras as ‘Spain’s Burgundy’: the wines have a distinctive richness, minerality and complexity that’s due in part to the variety, as well as skilful winemaking, involving careful use of oak.

Another property that’s proving the worth of Godello is Bodegas Valdesil (Liberty Wines), also in Valdeorras. Cristina Mantilla, who also makes wine at Fefiñanes, is the winemaker here, presiding over three white wines, all 100% Godello, and three reds.

The winery’s top wine, Pedrouzos (‘place of stones’), is made from Godello grapes from a single post-phylloxera vineyard high up in the hills, planted in 1885 – a half-hectare of spectacularly gnarled and rather pampered old vines, some propped up on stones to keep them from toppling over. It’s the oldest vineyard in the region and is planted on soils that are slick with slate. Cuttings from this vineyard are now used to propagate the family’s other vineyard holdings.

GOOD GODELLO

The vines were planted by the great-great-grandfather of the current director of Valdesil, Guillermo Prada. Guillermo says that although plantings of Godello are on the rise in the area again, ‘Godello was so low-yielding that people didn’t want to plant it back in the days of bulk wine’.

Top of the ‘ones to watch’

would be the Godella variety and

the Valdeorras DO

To be sure, as a variety it’s not without its shortcomings. It can get sunburnt easily and it doesn’t have much aroma, but it’s a versatile grape that lends itself well to subtle oak treatments and lees-contact. The well-crafted Valdesil whites showcase the variety’s propensity for richness of character when yields are kept low. Some have the fatness and mouthfeel of Viognier but without the aroma.

Albariño and Godello are just two varieties grown in Galicia; there are plenty of others too. The Ribeiro DO lies between Rías Baixas and Valdeorras, straddling the River Miño. Here the small but stylish and forward looking Viña Meín winery makes excellent whites from its own 16ha of vines. Twenty years ago, Palomino was the only variety on the property, but the current owner grubbed up this dull vine and replanted with local heroes such as Treixadura (now the main variety) as well as Loureira, Torrontés, Albariño and Godello and such rarities as Albilla, Lado and Caiño.

As elsewhere in Galicia, winemaker Ricardo Vazquez is experimenting with barrique fermentation. Yet it’s the unoaked version that’s the definitive wine – vibrant with peachy fruit and grapefruit zest. Just the thing with a plate of scallops straight from the rías.

Sommeliers’ recommendations

MATTHIEU LONGUERE LA TROMPETTE

Albariño de Fefiñanes III Año 2004, Rías Baixas
(£12.36, Moreno Wine, 020 7286 0678)

Released three years after harvest, this is the perfect alternative to dry Riesling: pure candied citrus fruit, a mineral style, incredibly complex and long. Proof, if needs be, that Albariño can age gracefully. It’s fit for noble fish such as turbot or even lobster, served with just a hint of vanilla to make the minerality of the wine shine through.

Alternatively, Viña do Campo, Bodegas do Campo 2007, Ribeiro (£7.10, Lea & Sandeman, 020 7221 1982) has a fresh style, with pink grapefruit characteristics. It’s spicy and flowery and also low enough in alcohol to drink with any kind of seafood.

GERARD BASSET MS MW TERRAVINA

Louro do Bolo, Godello Lias Finas 2006, Rafael Palacios, Valdeorras
(£10.93 inc VAT, Georges Barbier of London, 020 8852 5801)

This is a white wine from a grape much less known on the international scene than Albariño but with nevertheless a lot of character. It is a very refreshing wine with beautiful aromas of tangerine, pear, peach and dill, crisp and juicy on the palate, well balanced with a very pleasant aftertaste. It would work well with a crab and leek lasagne.

And if it’s reds you’re after...

Technically, Bierzo isn’t in Galicia at all; it’s in the westernmost part of Castile-Léon, separated by an imaginary line that runs between it and Valdeorras. Yet the rugged green hills and relatively high rainfall are reminiscent of next-door Galicia and stylistically its wines lie between Galicia and Castile-Léon.

White varieties such as Godello and Doña Blanca are grown here, but Bierzo’s story is all about red wines, with the once-obscure Mencía grape as the protagonist. Bierzo’s reds have attracted much acclaim in recent years (with good reason) and this once-forgotten region has been revitalised by a new wave of winemakers.

Foremost among them has been the Palacios family (see main text). Alvaro Palacios, one of Spain’s most respected winemakers, first set foot in Bierzo in 1979. He was impressed with the region’s potential but he had to wait until 1999 to set up Descendientes de J. Palacios (Fields, Morris & Verdin), after purchasing a number of small vineyards planted with old (some 90 years old) Mencía bush vines growing on steep slopes around the town of Corullón, in the south-west of the region.

Alvaro’s nephew, Ricardo Pérez Palacios, who studied oenology in Bordeaux and has worked in

Chile and Rioja, is the co-owner and co-winemaker for this project, which is run on biodynamic principles. With his curly brown hair and glasses, there’s something Harry Potterish about the young winemaker. He says, ‘When I first came here and saw it, I knew we could make good wine here. With the grape variety, the climate, the soil – I thought we could have the chance to do something different.’

They’ve been successful in that regard. The winery has been in existence for less than a decade, but already wines such as Pétalos del Bierzo and Villa de Corullón have iconic status. These wines are deep, concentrated and undeniably serious, disproving the theory that Mencía produces light, low-tannin reds. Another old-vine Mencía wine that’s been helping to disprove the ‘light red’ theory is Bodegas Pittacum (Les Caves de Pyrène). The property was bought a few years ago by the well-known Rías Baixas producer Terras Gauda, to make a red counterpart to its Albariño. Its muscular, intense red is the result.

There are plenty of light, low-tannin Bierzo reds out there (and there will no doubt be more as other producers cash in on the Bierzo gold rush) but don’t judge Mencía by its label without tasting it first.

Editorial feature from Imbibe Magazine - March / April 2009