Bernabeleva Madrid Cantocuerdas Albillo 2019

Organic. The rebooted whites of Madrid have opened our eyes and palates to one of Spanish wines’ best-kept secrets, Albillo. Juan Bulnes is passionate about this re-emerging variety with a history in the region that may date back to the 8th century. Judging by the examples we have tasted, it’s a passion well-founded! Suffering the same fate as just about every other shy-bearing and characterful indigenous grape variety around the globe, the once prized Albillo has found itself side-lined in favour of more profitable, high-yielding varieties. Its comeback is long overdue. It’s worth noting that Albillo once played a role—similar to that of Viognier in Côte Rôtie—in Vega Sicilia’s Unico blend.

This wine, however, shows what can be achieved when it stands alone. It comes entirely from three parcels of 85- to 100-year-old vines growing in the granitic sands of the Cantocuerdas vineyard—named after the large granite boulders that are strewn across the landscape. Each parcel is fermented separately and undergoes longish macerations (60 days in the case of one vat), and the wine is matured in used barriques for nine months. Textured, earthy and pure, this wine is often slow to unfurl in the glass, but it is well worth the wait.