Winemaker Notes
This wine presents the best of both worlds: the Malvar grape combines the acidity of Sauvignon Blanc with the body of an unoaked Chardonnay. The rare grape is indigenous to the Iberian Peninsula, and it is the principal white variety of the Madrid wine region. It is also known as Lairén (but it's not the same varietal as Airén)
Professional Ratings
-
Wine Enthusiast
This light straw-colored wine made from a grape native to the region near Madrid has aromas of apricot, orange blossom and flint. It has a viscous texture and beautiful flavors of mango, pineapple and passion fruit with an almost chalky minerality and notes of saline and Turkish delight in the finish.
Best Buy
There are hundreds of white grape varieties grown throughout the world. Some are indigenous specialties capable of producing excellent single varietal wines. Each has its own distinct viticultural characteristics, as well as aroma and flavor profiles.
Sitting just north of La Mancha, Spain’s (and Europe’s, for that matter) largest classified wine region, this region is much smaller than the vast La Mancha. However, Vinos de Madrid DO is a relatively large region in and of itself, with four subregions that start about 9 miles from the city center. Three of the subregions form a semicircle around the southern suburbs, Arganda, Navalcarnero and San Martín, where styles vary from one to another. El Molar, situated directly north of the city, is the newly created 4th subregion.
Since Vinos de Madrid was granted DO status in 1990, it has immersed itself in local wine production. Since then, substantial efforts have been made to raise quality and knowledge of the wines produced here. Millions of tourists who visit Spain’s capital city each year help the wines gain recognition and popularity across the globe. The growing investment through the years has paid off and export markets are increasingly interested in Vinos de Madrid wines.
While Tempranillo is the most planted grape variety in the Arganda subregion in the southeast, Garnacha is the dominant grape in all other subregions, including El Molar in the north, Navalcarnero in the south, and especially San Martín de Valdeiglesias in the west.