Winemaker Notes
Bright straw yellow in color with greenish reflections. The bouquet displays an elegant combination of fresh white fruit and a subtle citrus touch, combined with floral nuances, fennel and a mineral and balsamic background. On the palate, it is fresh and enveloping, with well-integrated acidity and a long finish.
Blend: 100% Godello
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
The 2024 El Zarzal is made using Godello grapes from two altitudes and orientations, picking off of a slope from both the highest and lowest areas to find a balance between the two. This wine does, spending four months aging on the lees in stainless vats before aging eight months in larger oak foudres. The palate offers a creamy sensation and aromatic complexity, medium-bodied in style, with a floral, ethereal flourish and a generosity of pineapple and green apple fruit. Drink now and over the next 5-7 years.
Godello is native to northwest Spain and has experienced a major revival in the last 20 years. Godello wines are typically sleek and lightly creamy in texture. Barrel fermentation and lees stirring are typical in Valdeorras, Spain where the grape comes from. These winemaking techniques make the most of Godello's inherent structure and help bring out its lovely floral character. Somm Secret—DNA profiling says that Spain’s Godello is actually identical to the Portugese grape variety Gouveio, which grows throughout the Douro and Dão (where it used to mistakenly be called Verdelho).
One of the few northwestern Spanish regions with a focus on a red variety, Bierzo, part of Castilla y León, is home to the flowery and fruity Mencia grape. Mencia produces balanced and bright red wines full of strawberry, raspberry, pomegranate, baking spice, pepper and black licorice. The well-drained soils of Bierzo are slate and granite.