This Disease Could Kill Galician Wine as We Know It
Its name is Flavescence dorée. It’s a serious vine disease. It’s spreading in Galicia. But it’s not the disease we should be worried about.
Sarah Jane Evans MW Talks Galician Wine
Sarah Jane Evans first stepped off a train in Santiago de Compostela in the rain—a perfect first experience of Galicia, if you ask me. We talked about Galicia’s past, present, and future challenges.
The Case for Aging Your Albariño
I spoke to molecular biologist Rubén López-Cortés about the aromas in Galician wine, and why there’s no excuse to not put away a bottle of two of Albariño.
Vega Sicilia Begins Construction on Rías Baixas Winery
Vega Sicilia has begun work on Viñedos Veiga, its pioneering project in the town of Crecente, in the Condado do Tea subzone of Rías Baixas. The winery is expected to take a year and a half to complete.
Ribeira Sacra Bets on Lower Yields
Harvests over five million kilos have been the norm in Ribeira Sacra for the past few years, but that’s coming to an end as of this year. The region’s regulatory council recently voted to lower the maximum yields for red grape varieties by about 20%, aiming to prioritize quality and respond to evolving market conditions. …
Why Galician Music Should Be in Your Spotify Rotation
Even if you don’t speak Galician, there are plenty of ways you can help support the language and its preservation. Like listening to music!
Galician Wines I Loved in 2024
It’s December. 2024 is drawing to a close, and it’s time for us all to reflect on the important things in life, like how many bottle shots of Galician wine we posted to Instagram. Here are 12 wines I loved in 2024 that sum up my year in Galician wine.
Galician Wine News: Harvest Edition
Harvest 2024 is all but completed in Galicia, and all signs point to a great year for quality. Though the amount of grapes harvested was slightly lower than in 2023, good weather conditions throughout the growing season allowed for a slow and complete ripening, which points to a potentially great vintage. Valdeorras kicked things off on …
50 Years of ReViVal – The Story of Valdeorras Godello
Despite godello’s meteoric rise, just fifty years ago the grape was on the edge of extinction. 2024 marks 50 years of the ReViVal plan—50 years since the beginning of godello’s rise to fame. Its modern success is a testament to a wine region that managed not only to recover it, but to also turn it into one of the most appreciated white wines in Spain.
An Update in Ribeira Sacra
Amid uncertainty and turmoil, the aid package for crisis distillation of surplus wine in DO Ribeira Sacra has been announced: growers will get €1.05 per liter of wine they get rid of.
That amount was confirmed on September 27 by the Consellería de Medio Rural, and the official order releasing the funds will be published tomorrow in the Diario Oficial de Galicia, with the deadline to apply for distillation aid set one month from the day after publication.
Galician Wine News Roundup
Crisis Distillation Approved in Ribeira Sacra On September 2, the Xunta de Galicia announced the approval of a crisis distillation order for Ribeira Sacra. The Xunta also activated up to €2M in aid for growers “against any remaining grapes that may remain in the vineyards.” It’s the first time that a Galician DO will recur …
On Location with Adega Algueira
Established in 2005 by Fernando González, Adega Algueira has led a quality-driven revolution in the Ribeira Sacra. Fernando is like the Lorax: he speaks for Ribeira Sacra. He considers himself a mouthpiece for the region, spreading the message of Ribeira Sacra’s history and tradition. Now, second-generation Fabio has joined his father at the helm of the winery.
We spent an afternoon in some of their most iconic vineyards, talking about the Ribeira Sacra’s terroir and what it means to make wine in the land of heroic viticulture.
DO Rías Baixas, IXP Barbanza e Iria Add Ratiño to Approved Grapes
The Ratiño Gallega grape variety is the newest addition to the roster of approved grapes for DO Rías Baixas and IXP Barbanza e Iria. Ratiño is a native variety that survived the 19th-century triple threat of powdery mildew, downy mildew, and phylloxera in the region of Pontevedra, and was rediscovered over 30 years ago by …
In the Vineyard with Rafael Palacios
Rafael Palacios is crafting world-class wines from Godello in Valdeorras. From his 100-point Sorte O Soro to the entry-level Louro, this Riojano has established himself as one of the region’s leading winemakers.
We spent a day driving around Valdeorras, visiting his different vineyards as he explained his philosophy behind winemaking and what makes this region of Galicia the greatest terroir for Godello.
Galician Wine News Roundup
Here’s your Galician Wine News roundup from June and July 2024, translated into English for your convenience.
Galicia’s Monovarietal Madness
How controversial billboard placement speaks to a deeper problem in how Galicia’s wine regions market themselves.
Aromas in Galician Wines, Explained
Describing the aromas in Galician wines requires a little chemistry lesson. Like all wines, the aromas in albariño, mencía, godello, and more come from volatile flavor compounds that are let loose when mixed with alcohol and can be detected by our noses.
Galician Wine News Roundup
Here’s a rundown of what happened in Galician wine in May 2024, translated to English for your convenience.
On the Galician Language, Place Names, and Wine
To begin to think about Galicia, its people, its culture, and its wine, we need to start with the Galician language: galego. I’ve been told I speak Spanish with a Galician accent—the sing-song, musical, rising and falling cadence that’s one of the first things people from the rest of Spain will imitate. “Ah, galleguiño!” they’ll say, using the distinct -iño/-iña diminutive native to Galicia. “Que tal las vaquiñas?”
In Ribeiro, Politics As Usual
Playing politics has its price, and Ribeiro is paying it. Whoever takes over its presidency will inherit a rudderless wine region, trying and failing to emulate the success of Rías Baixas through senseless promotional campaigns…