The ocean gives amazing things to a winemaker: salty ocean breezes, warm afternoons but cool mornings and evenings, and a unique seashell-strewn minerality are just a few examples.

On the Atlantic seaboard of Spain, just... Read More

The ocean gives amazing things to a winemaker: salty ocean breezes, warm afternoons but cool mornings and evenings, and a unique seashell-strewn minerality are just a few examples.

On the Atlantic seaboard of Spain, just off the beaches, the Alba family has been producing beautifully bright Albariño for decades. Their wines take advantage of everything the ocean has to give to Albariño. In fact, small, family-owned Bodegas Albamar shows just how much potential this union of terroir and variety has.

Xurxo Alba, who inherited vines from his father, harnesses Galicia’s unique terroir in a variety of ways. He uses only indigenous yeast—super-rare for the region—and encourages a long, slow fermentation. He blocks malolactic fermentation, to allow all the saline freshness and bright minerality to show through.