UNFILTERED Archives: Spain

Checking in with Raventós i Blanc

Checking in with Raventós i Blanc
It’s been a while since we trained our eye on one of the very nearest and dearest of all estates to the collective Skurnik heart: Raventós i Blanc (aside, of course, from the adorable periodic cavorting of their farm animals...

O Ribeiro: an Ode to the Forgotten Bank

O Ribeiro: an Ode to the Forgotten Bank
The Ribeiro: would this rose by any other word smell as sweet– or even sweeter? I’m half convinced that a jazzier name alone could have worked wonders for this underappreciated denominación.  As it stands, this fairly generic “Riverbank” (the literal...

Finca Torremilanos: A Gem Hidden In Plain Sight

Finca Torremilanos: A Gem Hidden In Plain Sight
So rapid has been the rise of the Ribera del Duero’s star, so commanding its market presence of late, that it’s easy to forget its short life as a government-ratified denominación dates only to 1982. It’s not, of course, that...

Avant-Garde Alavesa: Bodegas y Viñedos Artadi

Avant-Garde Alavesa: Bodegas y Viñedos Artadi
The holm oak, Quercus ilex, is an evergreen oak species native to southern Europe. Part of the unique botanical patrimony of the Mediterranean, its acorns have fattened the hogs destined for the choicest hams since at least Roman times, and...

Introducing Astarbe Sagardotegia!

Introducing Astarbe Sagardotegia!
Cider has been produced at the Mendiola farmhouse in Astigarraga by members of the Astarbe family for close to five centuries. The oldest surviving document that references cider production at this address dates back to May 20th, 1563. To put...

Adegas Guímaro: A Jewel In Spain’s Ribeira Sacra

Adegas Guímaro: A Jewel In Spain’s Ribeira Sacra
The Ribeira Sacra deserves your attention. Put this into context. 96 producers, 52 of which export wine, farm 1,200 hectares under vine by 2,800 land owners. When you look at the old terraces and stone walls dividing each parcel, these...

In Memoriam: Don Manuel ‘Manolo’ Lozano Salado

In Memoriam: Don Manuel ‘Manolo’ Lozano Salado
On the morning of April 26th, the sherry world lost one of its most decorated and beloved protagonists. Don Manuel ‘Manolo’ Lozano Salado was born in Jerez de la Frontera in 1954. His family was in the hospitality business, counting...

Venus La Universal: A Passion Project Borne of Love

Venus La Universal: A Passion Project Borne of Love
Like many of the great stories, the story of Venus La Universal begins with love. As the children of two of the pioneers of the Priorat D.O., Sara Pérez and René Barbier fils grew up as neighbors, picking grapes together...