Albariño: Laxas Of Rias Baixas

There's a Snooth virtual wine tasting coming up on May 16th which will involve Albariño wines from Spain’s Rias Baixas region of Galicia.  I'm tasting nearly a dozen different Albariños for that reason - not because it's spring, or because it's almost summer, or because I love Albariño.  Although each of those reasons would have been enough to convince me.

The Laxas bodega has been in the family since 1862, and they watch over their 13-acre estate vineyard with careful eyes.  The vines grow on steep terraces which look south over the Miña River in sandy, mineral-laden soil.  Winemaker Jorge Dominguez Hervella works with great fruit and makes the most of it, producing an Albariño that speaks of its land.  Alcohol on the 2017 Albariño checks in as 12.5% abv and it sells for around $18.

The 2017 Laxas Albariño is a pale yellow wine which has an interesting nose full of lemon-lime, apricot and a lanolin note.  A bit of earth peeks out amid the smell of white flowers.  The mouth is rather full, yet the acidity is fresh and zingy.  Lemony and tropical fruit flavors abound in a mineral-laden palate and leave me craving a calamari and scungilli salad.


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Albariño: Don Pedro De Sotomaior

Albariño is a lovely white wine grape that is predominant in Spain’s northwest corner. It's the reason they get out of bed every day in the Rias Baixas region of Galicia. It's also the driving force behind a winery known as Adegas Galegas. If you know the area, the company is in Salvaterra do Mino, nudged up against Portugal's northern border.

The firm's Don Pedro line concentrates on Rias Baixas and its heritage of Albariño. The wines are named for Don Pedro de Soutomaior, a 15th century knight and a hero of the region. There's reportedly some speculation that he was also Christopher Columbus. I could find no documentation that anyone ever saw them in the same room together, so maybe that’s true.

Winemaker Asunción Carballo leads a team of people who strive to produce wines which exhibit the character of the region. She rides atop a wave of talented female winemakers in Spain. The wine's alcohol content sits at 13% abv and it sells for just under 20 bucks.

This pale wine, the Don Pedro de Sotomaior Rias Baixas Albariño 2017, is subtle on its nose, with very light aromas of citrus and wet rocks. The sniff is not rendered tart by those descriptives, however. There is a softness to it that takes the edge away. The palate is another matter, as a rippingly joyous acidity makes itself known immediately. Flavors of crisp apples, lemons and a touch of orange are as vibrant as they seem here on the page, like a lovely spring day bathed in the cool wind of Galicia. The pleasure lasts long after the sip disappears. Pair this with fried calamari.

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The Spanish Refresher

Albariño is a grape of Spanish origin, and in the Rias Baixas region of northwest Spain it is pretty much king. Ninety percent of all the wine made in the area is Albariño.

Kobrand, the U.S. importer of Don Olegario Albariño, writes that Olegario is an "artisanal winery begun in the 1950s by Adolfo Falcón," and it's still a family affair. In the 1980s, Adolfo's son Olegario pushed the bodega to its present status as a top producer of Albariño. His five offspring now run things, with Roberto Carlos Falcón handling winemaking duties, while Fernando grows the grapes. María, Vanessa and Mónica are also involved in the day-to-day operation.

This wine has served up as one of the more enjoyable whites I drink all year for several vintages now. This reliable wine is tasty vintage after vintage. The 13% abv alcohol number makes for a light and easy sip, but it’s no pushover. The thread that runs through each vintage is that of minerality and acidity, so bring on the oysters.

The 2016 is pale gold and fresh-smelling. Green apple and lemon aromas are braced by a strident minerality. Those minerals really come forward on the palate, as do the apple and citrus flavors. The wine is ever so slightly frizzante in the glass, and the acidity rips across the taste buds.


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Spanish Wine: Albariño

The Spanish Albariño grape is the reigning king of varieties in the country’s Rias Baixas region. Related to the Alsatian Riesling grape, Albariño makes a white wine that usually offers a nice touch of sweetness amid a ton of citrus minerality.

The wine’s importer notes that Bodega Don Olegario was started some 60 years ago in the place that Albariño calls home.  Don Olegario is a 12-acre single vineyard with vines averaging 30-years of age growing in granitic, sandy soil that drains well. It is one of only a few single estates in Rías Baixas, where vineyard land is often divided among hundreds of growers. The growing is sustainable and harvesting is done by hand. The grapes are fermented in stainless steel tanks.

The wine sells in most places online for under $20 and has a well-restrained alcohol content of only 13% abv.

This 2015 Albariño pours up pretty in the glass - yellow-gold and a touch of bubbles. The bubbly sensation doesn't last too long, but it's festive while it’s there. The nose brings some citrus - of course - and a smattering of stone fruit and ripe apples. In the mouth, the magic really begins. The acidity is razor-sharp and a complete delight. The bottle should come with a dozen oysters. Flavors of apples and Meyer lemons grace the palate and you simply don't run out of minerals. There's a lot to like here, and it lasts long beyond the sip.


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You Can Call Me Albariño

Albariño is a grape of Spanish origin, and in the Rias Baixas region it is pretty much king. The name means "white of the Rhine," I am told.  Albariño is, indeed, related to the Alsatian Riesling grape. Here in California we see a lot of home-grown Albariño, but it's always nice to have one we might call "the real McCoy," if McCoy was, indeed, a Spanish name. In this instance, we might refer to the wine in question as "the real Falcón."

Kobrand, the wine's U.S. importer, writes that Don Olegario is an "artisanal winery begun in the 1950s by Adolfo Falcón." In the 1980s, Adolfo's son Olegario pushed the bodega to its present status as a top producer of Albariño. The five offspring of Olegario now run things, with Roberto Carlos Falcón handling winemaking duties, while Fernando grows the grapes. María, Vanessa and Mónica are also involved in the day-to-day operation.

They point out that the winery is "a top producer of Albariño, the region’s most famous grape variety." The grapes for this Albariño come from a single, 12.4-acre vineyard which has 30-year-old vines growing in sandy and granite soils. "Sustainable winegrowing is used," relays the importer, and "the grapes are hand harvested and undergo a cold maceration before fermentation in stainless steel vats."

Bodega Don Olegario is one of only a few single estates in Rías Baixas, where vineyard land is often divided among hundreds of growers. This allows the bodega to control its fruit from field to bottle.

The 2014 Don Olegario Albariño Rias Baixas offers lots of limes and lemons with a touch of sweet pineapple on the nose. A nice streak of minerals rides through, as well. The palate shows citrus and green apples, joined by minerality galore. Great acidity makes for a predictably refreshing - and food friendly - quaff. Lemon flavors last well into the medium length finish. At 13% abv, the alcohol is reasonably restrained.

This wine is a beautiful aperitif, but save some for the seafood course, too. The minerality and acidity make it a great match for oysters, crustaceans and just plain old fish.

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