Green Spain Flashcards
What are the 4 provinces of Galicia?
Pontevedra, A Coruña, Ourense and Lugo.
What are the 2 most important rías in Galicia?
Miño and the Sil
What is the main mountain system in Galicia and its 3 main ranges?
Macizo Galaico. Serra de Eixe, Serra da Enciña da Lastra and Serra do Courel.
Primary Soil Types: Galicia
Granite based along the coast. Granite and clay inland in river valleys and slate and shale even further inland.
Granite is ideal for climate because it provides excellent drainage.
Rías Baixas Sub Zones
Val do Salnes: oldest, birthplace of Albarino. More than 50% of production comes from here
Condado de Tea: furthest inland, second largest, most mountainous, warmest, fuller bodied, riper fruits
O Rosal: on banks of Miño river on Southern tip of Galicia
Soutomaior: smaller, only region whose sole production is Albariño
Ribeira do Ulla: Furthest North. Only sub zones that produced red wine
Small scale, family owned producers
Adegas. Gallego for bodega. Produce high quality, world-class wines
What other varietal may be blended in Condado do Tea?
Treixadura
What other varietal may be blended in O Rosal?
Loureira
What other varietal may be blended in Val do Salnes AND Riberia do Ulla?
Loureira, Treixadura or Caíño Blanco
Albariño Profile
Thick-skinned grape, good for weather protection. Bright acid, fresh. Floral aromatics + peach, apricot, grapefruit. Salinity.
Treixadura
Thin-skinned grape, highly productive. Citrus and stone fruit aromatics, floral. Often blended with other Galician varietals.
Blends well with Albariño as it balances out the high acid.
Can ripen quickly before the fall.
Godello
High quality grape. Aromatic. Ripens to high sugar levels = full-bodied wines with high alcohol = handles barrel aging well.
Mencía
Produced light, vibrant wines with soft tannins and moderate alcohol.
From Riberia Sacra: fresh red berries, herbs, smokey minerality. Best examples are aged in large wooden vats
Ribeira Sacra Sub-Zones
Chantada, Ribeiras do Miño (both along Miño N-S), both extremely wet
Ribeiras do Sil, Amandi and Quiroga-Bibei (along Sil W-E), flank the river, many S facing vineyards
Riberia Sarca Summum
Tintos must have minimum 85% preferred varietals, including min 60% Mencía.
(DO regulations state that wines must be made with min 70% preferred varietals for tintos)
Blancos must be made from 100% preferred varietals
Which is the oldest DO in Galicia?
DO Ribeiro
Colleiteiro
Boutique winery in Ribeiro with no more than 60K L of wine produced.
Profile of Ribeiro wines
Medium-bodied, unoaked, Treixadura dominant (90% white).
Fresh acidity, notes of lime, stone fruit and possibly cucumber
DO Valdeorras
55% white
45% red
Home of Godello. Mencía is dominant red grape
Most continental DO in Galicia. Most “extreme” diurnals
Slate on quartz. hard, drainable rock
Valdeorras Castas Nobles
Given to wines with at least 85% of preferred varieties
Profile of Valdeorras wines
Whites: typically Godello. Ripe yellow apple, hints of thyme.
Tintos: typically Mencía. Similar to those produced in el Bierzo.
When was the first reference to Txakoli?
1623
What is a fuero?
Certain privileges, rights and local autonomy in exchange for allegiance to the Spanish crown. These were granted when Basque provinces were incorporated into the Kingdom of Castille in the 14th century.
When was the association of Txakolineros created?
1980
How many Basque provinces are there?
- 3 in France, 4 in Spain (1 is Navarra, other 3 are in Pais Vasco)
3 in Pais Vasco:
Alava (most continental)
Vizcaya (Bilbao)
Guipuzkoa (SanSe)
Soils in Pais Vasco
Alava: limestone
Vizcaya/Bizkaia: limestone subsoil, clay topsoil
Guipuzkoa: clay subsoil, aluvial topsoil
What percentage of wine in Paid Vasco is white?
95%, 90% of vineyards are planted with Hondarribi Zuri
Hondarribi Zuri Profile
crisp, high acid, pale yellow. Aromas of citrus and white flower.
Viticulture
Vines are trained on parral near the coast for airflow, espaldera is becoming more common as it’s less labor intensive.
Txakoli traditionally macerates on its skins before a 2-3 week fermentation. Once wine is bottles, it’s left on the lees
Foudres
Large wooden vats where fermentation historically took place. Now stainless steel is more common.
DO Txakoli de Alava / Arabako
Smallest of the DO’s and most continental. Low elevation, least rainfall. Wines are a bit lower in acidity which makes them less harsh. These would be considered “non classic styles”
DO Txakoli de Bizkaia
Largest DO. Light and easy drinking txakoli. Floral, tangy citrus, green apple
DO Txakoli de Getaria
Oldest, vines are always on parral because it rains so much. Some rose is produced but nearly all is exported.
Red varietals in Galicia
Brancellao, Caiño Tinto, Souson, Mencia, Espadeiro
