Luis Rodriguez "A Torna Dos Pasas" Galicia, Spain 2022

FROM JOSÉ PASTOR:

THE WINE: 40% Brancellao, and roughly equal parts Caiño Redondo, Caiño Longo, and Ferrol, vine age 10-20 years old, grown on steep south-facing granite hillsides located in the town of Arnoia, Galicia. A Torna dos Pasas was fermented with native yeasts in steel vat, and raised in used 300 liter French oak barrels for 12 months.

THE PRODUCER: As a passionate son of Ribeiro, Luis Rodriguez is one of the most knowledgeable winegrowers in Galicia. He studied enology and philosophy in Madrid, took the time to visit many of Europe’s great wine regions, and even served as the president of the Ribeiro D.O. for many years. Over time, Luis has accumulated just under 6 hectares scattered over nearly 200 micro-plots primarily located in the town of Arnoia, a village with some of the steepest south-facing vineyards in Ribeiro. Here the soils are decomposed granite with sandy topsoil. Luis’s vines range from 10 to 50 years old, with many of them being planted by Luis himself. The tiny adega that Luis works in was built by his grandfather and is called Viña de Martín, named after the first vineyard that he took over from his uncle Martín. Luís works with a mixture of temperaturecontrolled equipment and a variety of sizes of oak barrels, with a small amount of new barrels reserved for the top Escolma wines that are only made in certain vintages. All fermentations are carried out with native yeasts. He uses judicious amounts of sulfur during the winemaking process to avoid oxidation. The white wines are aged on the lees.