Do Ferreiro - Rebisaca 2020

Do Ferreiro is a small family winery in the historic heart of Spain’s coastal Rías Baixas region. Highly regarded for crafting Albariño, the winery has become a reference point for the grape. Do Ferreiro was founded in 1973 by Gerardo Mendez, though he never labelled a wine Do Ferreiro until the 1986 vintage. Gerardo and his son, Manuel, and daughter, Encarna, farm over 175 tiny plots of Albariño by hand in the Salnès subzone of Rías Baixas. The family owns 10 hectares of organically grown vines, three of which are over 50 years old, and one of which is over 200 years old! The valley’s proximity to the ocean, ideal climate due to the natural protection by mountain ranges, and decomposed granitic soil have gained the reputation for being the ideal zone in Rías Baixas for growing profound Albariño.

Rebisaca is a small production blend of old-vine Treixadura (25%) and Loureiro (5%) from a vineyard site called Rebisaca in the Condado do Tea subzone and Albariño (70%) from the Salnés subzone of Rías Baixas on granite, sand and alluvial soils. All grapes are hand-harvested and fermented separately with indigenous yeasts in stainless steel tanks, then aged on the lees for nine months before blending and bottling. The wine features an electric palate, combining the saline minerality of Albariño grown on granite soils and the exotic fruit of Treixadura and Loureiro. Drink now, though Rebisaca gains complexity and intensity with bottle age.