For A Few Euro More. Stunning White From The Spanish Badlands. .

Stunning White From The Spanish Badlands

For A Few Euro More You Get Three. 

Azul y Garanza Naturaleza Salvaje Blanca 2019, 11.5%

R.R.P. €22-23. Stockists: Manning's, Ballylickey/ Little Green Grocer, Kilkenny / Mary Pawle online.

The fruit for this Azul Y Garanza white comes from an amazing area, the Bardenas Reales, a semi-desert or badlands in Navarra. The impoverished and arid clay-calcareous soil, the dry weather and the big contrast of temperature between the day and the night provide grapes with high concentration and a perfect balance and also offer distinctive character and great expression.

It has a yellow-orange colour (10 days of fermentation with skin contact for 5 days) and a hint of haziness (it is unfiltered). There’s an acidic streak in the aromas, reminiscent of cider apples, with herbal and floral hints also. And those orchard notes come through too on the mild palate which is bright, fresh (strikingly so) and pleasant, a harmonious matching of fruit and acidity, and then an excellent dry finish. Off the beaten track, just like the place it comes from. 

Very Highly Recommended.

 

An excellent match for fish, shellfish, vegetable dishes and cured meats, tapas also and fine too as an aperitif. Serve chilled, but not too cold – 8 to 10 degrees is optimum. So take it out of the fridge 20 minutes before you crack it open. At 11.5 %, this is dangerously drinkable.

Interestingly, this particular wine is made from a single vineyard, very old bush vines in a very wild parcel. And there’s a low yield from older Garnacha Blanca vines. 

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The label info sums it up well: Single Vineyard. Made in Amphora. Low Intervention. Unfiltered. Limited Edition.

Here’s a little tip. If you are on the lookout for this, you could easily make an error as they have three wines with very similar labels. Don’t worry though if you the mistake; it will be a happy one, as all three - the Clarete (Garnacha & Garnacha Blanca), the red (Garnacha) and the white (Garnacha Blanca) - are excellent.