Nanclares Albarino Dandelion 2024

IMPORTER NOTES:

ORIGIN - Val do Salnes, Rías Baixas, Galicia.

VARIETIES - 100% Albariño

VINEYARDS - “From 10 organically farmed inland plots of 25–45-year-old vines in the villages of Cambados, Ribadumia, Meaño, Meis and Barro, planted on sandy, decomposed granite soils and are trained in the traditional Pergola style that facilitates aeration.”

VINIFICATION - “The hand-harvested grapes are gently pressed in a pneumatic press into stainless steel tanks without destemming. The wine ferments and rests in tank on its lees for 5-7 months, with weekly batonnage for the first 1-3 months. Bottled without stabilization or clarification, and with only a gentle mechanical filtration and small addition of SO2.”

PRODUCER PROFILE - “Alberto Nanclares and Silvia Prieto make transparent, Atlantic-influenced wines, mainly with Albariño from old vines around the village of Cambados (where the winery is located). Employing organic farming practices and a restrained hand in the cellar, the pair have managed something very rare: the refinement of Albariño into angular, age-worthy wines that express the fascinating terruños of Cambados and Rías Baixas. Alberto and Silvia currently own 5 hectares of Albariño in the Val do Salnés, all trained in the traditional Pergola style and divided into 12 small parcels in the parroquias of Castrelo (South Cambados), Vilariño (North Cambados) and Padrenda (North Meaño). The essence of their approach is reverence for the vineyard, from organic farming to fermentation by native yeasts. To express the edginess of the naturally high in acidity Albariño grape, they eschew adding potassium, which is what many in Rías Baixas use to soften the acidity of their wines for an international market. Malolactic fermentation rarely occurs, and the wines spend a good amount of time (often a year or more) on their lees before bottling.”