A guide to Rias Baixas amp Albariño

>> YOUR LINK HERE: ___ http://youtube.com/watch?v=nNfmCu8WiVo

What makes Rias Baixas unique, asks http://www.aroundtheworldin80harvests... to winemaker Pablo Estevez. Talking from the beautiful estate of Notas Frutales, Pablo explains the climate, soils and viticulture of Rias Baixas and why it is the perfect place for Albariño. • This interview is in Spanish with English subtitles. • Pablo, for how long have you been making Albariño? • Well, this year it is 16 years working here in Rias Baixas DO. • Perfect, and how is Albariño in the vineyard - as a grape variety. Are they big grapes, small grapes? No, it's quite a loose bunch and spherical and small bunches. • And how does it behave here in the climate? Explain to us a bit about the climate of Rias Baixas and how the variety adapts to the region? • It's very well adapted. It is a variety that finds adequate alcoholic levels and at the same time it conserves acidity. So we have wines that are very aromatic and balanced. • And how much is the average alcohol and acidity in a normal harvest (if that exists!) • On an average harvest it is between 12-12.5, and acidity at 8, 8.5. This is a normal harvest. In some harvests, like last year, the levels can be a bit higher, which is possibly to do with climate change. • And the acidity? • In the last few years it has been adequate, values between 7.5 and 8.5. It is what I personally like in this style of wines. • And you manage vineyards in different ways here, tell me a bit about the difference between the parrals and other systems. • Yes, the habitual here in Rias Baixas, is the parral. The parral helps the humidity to escape, because here we have an atlantic climate and some years with a lot of rain. And so it helps separate the grapes from this humidity. The sub zone we are in here, El Condado, we don't have the same high level of rains as on the coast, it is a bit more of a transitional climate. And here we get both systems of training - the parral and espaldera. • And what differences do we find within Rias Baixas. Within the region we have sub zones that are more coastal, and others that are more inland. What diversity is there of climate, soils and aspects and how does that influence the character of Albariño in the glass? • Of course. Rias Baixas has 5 sub zones. The most productive and important in terms of volume is Salnés. Then at the north of Galicia, Ulla. Then by the Miño river we have Condado and Rosal. And then another, which is small but significant, Soutomaior. I work in many of them and, yes, I see the same variety but in different forms. Especially in their levels of acidity and aromatic profiles. It's clear the variety behaves in a different way [in each place]. • And in the zones closer to the sea, the acidity is higher? • Yes, that's normal. The acidity is higher in regions that are more coastal and humid. They can also mature slower than the regions further inland. • Great, and can you explain to me the general character of Albariño? What aromas will we find, how is the body? An appreciation of Albariño as a variety. • One of the principal characteristics is the aroma. It is intense, clean, with floral and fruit aromas. And this would be the principal characteristic of this variety. And this is united with the moderate alcohol... wines with lots of acidity, well structured, and wines that are well sought after today in the market. • Perfect, and there are different styles of Albariño too - younger, fresher styles in stainless steel, and then you have more complex styles on the lees. Will you explain to us the diversity that you can find within Albariño within Rias Baixas? • Yes - as you say, the most common is fermented in stainless steel with controlled temperatures to make a young wine. But it's also true that people are looking more and more towards styles with some age, sometimes keeping the wine on its lees for a certain time, and we get a very different profile of wine which also has its own fans. And then within Rias Baixas, it isn't all Albariño! They aren't all single variety wines, you can also find blends - here in particular blends with Albariño and Treixadura, or with Louerra and Godello. And in other subzones there is the Rias Baixas Rosal with Loureiro

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