To make a high quality Albariño that is as delightful as the Etiqueta Ámbar, a winery requires excellent terroir, strong viticultural practices and the use of modern winemaking techniques to preserve the freshness of the grapes. Bodega Granbazán is located in the Val do Salnés subregion of the Rías Baixas—the coldest and wettest subregion of the Rías Baixas, located on the Atlantic Coast. The team handpicks only the best grapes from their own vineyard parcels, and they also source fruit from a few local growers whom they have had longstanding relationships with. The region’s granite soils make the grapes struggle during the growing season, which results in a small harvest of intensely flavored fruit. The climate is influenced by the nearby coastline, and is perfectly suited to produce aromatic and delightful Albariño—made in a style no other region in the world can emulate.

 

Once the grapes are harvested by hand, they extract the juices by gravity, without using a press. You might wonder how this is possible, but the winery’s maceration tanks are situated high up in the winery. The destemmed grapes are put into the tanks where the sole weight of the grapes on one another releases only the purest of free run juice; the end amount used is miniscule compared with the amount of grapes used. The remaining must is pressed, and then used for other wines. Even though a small amount of juice is produced from this process, the quality is impeccable and the seeds are not crushed, nor the skins agitated creating any bitterness in the wine. After a slow and cool fermentation, the wine remains in the stainless steel tanks on its lees for roughly five months before bottling. The highly knowledgeable team of technological oenologists at Bodega Granbazán oversees this entire process, making sure that their Albariño will meet the highest expectations that the world has come to expect from this bodega. This dedication and passion results in a beautiful Albariño with serious authenticity and undeniably classic characteristics.

 

The 2013 Etiqueta Ámbar has a light straw yellow core moving to green hues on the rim. The aromas are incredibly fresh and vibrant showing flavors of slightly unripe nectarine, green pineapple, mango skin, orange blossoms, salt preserved lemons and wet stones. The palate is bone dry with a medium body showing flavors of melon rind, yellow peach pit, and lemon zest with a slight hint of salinity on the long and mineral driven finish. I highly recommend decanting this wine for a brief period, about thirty minutes, before serving into all purpose white wine stems at about 50-55 degrees. Although I have enjoyed many great Albariños with age, this particular wine should be consumed over the next year or two, while the wine is still fresh and youthful. There are few wines in the world as perfect for seafood as Albariño, although it is really one of the most food friendly whites that exists in the wine world, so you can be adventurous with what styles of food you throw in its direction. One of the favorite pairings of all is ceviche, there are hundreds of different approaches to this classic dish, but this recipe from Jamie Oliver is really good.