El Camino del Albariño "Descubre El Camino" 6 Pack

WHAT'S IN THE PACK?

• 2021 Nortico Alvarinho, Minho, Portugal $16.99

Nortico’s birthplace is known for the local dedication to traditional crafts, and the label design reflects azulejos, the hand-painted tiles covering buildings all over this region. Ask anyone for the best Alvarinho in Portugal and people will point to the extreme north in the sub-region of Moncao and Melgao, right on the border with Spain. Nortico Alvarinho is a superb example of the grape's hallmarks: fresh citrus, peach and tropical aromas paired with clean, juicy fruit and vibrant minerality.

Tasting Notes: Creamy citrus oil, lime and yellow apple notes are nicely spiced and detailed with saline mineral and floral underpinnings through the long finish.

• 2022 Forjas de Salnés "Leirana" Albariño, Rías Baixas, Spain $34.99

Rodrigo Mendez is a 5th generation winemaker from the tiny fishing village of Meaño in Salnes, the most coastal of the subzones of Rías Baixas. Descended from the founding head of the DO of Rías Baixas, he is an astute historian of the history and heritage of this place, and makes wines to express and preserve this history and unique maritime terroir.

Tasting Notes: Pale, green-tinged yellow. Bright and sharply focused on the nose, displaying incisive Meyer lemon, honeysuckle, quinine and mineral scents, along with a hint of ginger in the background. The palette offers a gorgeous minerality combined with citrus and orchard fruit flavors. Closes on a spicy note, displaying strong, floral-tinged persistence.

• 2021 Lagar de Pintos Albariño, Rías Baixas, Spain $35.99

Lagar de Pintos is a family estate currently run by its 4th generation, winemaker Marta Castro-Pintos. Marta’s father, Pepe Pintos, modernized the estate in the 1980's during the local revival of the Albariño grape variety. In the 2000’s, Marta converted all the vineyards to organic farming, and has been a pioneer on this front in Rías Baixas ever since. All four generations at the Lagar de Pintos winery have shared a single philosophy regarding their work: respect and commitment to the land.

Tasting Notes: The wine is light golden in the glass, and offers a bold, aromatic nose full of juicy Meyer lemon and citrus zest and a hint of white flowers backed up by a distinct Celtic Sea salt note. As the wine opens, the unripe peach stone fruit aromas give way to juicy green apple and herbs, making for an extremely complex Albariño profile. On the palate, super bright green herbaceous flavors are matched by beautiful minerality that shows off the granitic soil and even a tiny bit of tannic, mineral structure. Lemon verbena flavors blend with a cooling, fresh mineral water mouthfeel ending in a very long finish.

• 2022 Rodrigo Mendez "Cies" Albariño, Rias Baixas, Spain $45.99

Cíes is one of winemaker Rodrigo Mendez's smallest production wines, it reflects a historical approach to Albariño from the Salnés zone, where his family has produced wine for 5 generations in and around the village of Meaño. Cíes is fermented with its own indigenous yeast and then partially aged in old wooden vessels without controlling the temperature—this was the way all Albariño wines were made prior to the 1980s, when stainless steel technology became prevalent in the area.

Tasting Notes: Pale gold in color with vibrant, mineral-accented aromas of orange, pear and honeysuckle, along with a spicy top note that gains strength as the wine opens up. Lively and sharply focused on the palate, offering intense citrus and orchard fruit flavors underscored by chalky minerality. Finishes dry, nervy and impressively long, leaving resonating orange zest and floral qualities behind.

• 2021 Rodrigo Mendez & Alberto Orte "Muti" Albarino, Rias Baixas, Spain $45.99

Alberto Orte is a force to be reckoned with, producing truly compelling and ambitious wines that have firmly established him as one of the most talented up and comers of the next generation of Spanish winemakers. Muti Albariño was conceived as a tribute to Patrick Mata’s mother Christiane, with whom he spoke German at home – “Muti” means “Mom” in German. Made by Rodrigo Mendez and Patrick’s lifelong friend and co-founder of Olé, Alberto Orte, Muti is a classic expression of Salnes Albariño. Muti is sourced from three different sites.

Tasting Notes: A complex, highly perfumed bouquet evokes orange zest, white flowers, candied ginger and dusty minerals, with a suggestion of fresh fig in the background.

• 2021 Lagar de Pintos "3000 Cepas" Albariño, Rías Baixas, Spain $89.99

The '3000 Cepas' (3,000 vines) cuvée is made from a manual selection of the estate’s oldest vines—many ungrafted—all over 60 years old. After a gentle settling process, fermentation takes place in oak barrels, with weekly batonnage. The wine is aged for 12 months on its lees in the same barrel, without malolactic fermentation. The wine is then bottled and rests another year before release. Only 4,000 bottles are produced of this wine. These old vines’ concentrated flavors, along with the intense acidity due to the lack of malolactic fermentation, produce an intense wine that can age for decades, but has the complexity and varietal expression to drink now.

Tasting Notes: Intense yellow in color with golden reflections. Complex aromas of ripe fruit, anise and white flowers integrated well with the oak. On the palate, it is powerful and voluminous, with elegant mineral notes and tertiary aromas from the well-integrated oak. Excellent lees texture is wrapped in the freshness typical of the variety.

WHAT IS EL CAMINO DEL ALBARIÑO?

This June, we celebrate the diversity and versatility of Albariño wines while raising funds for Wine on Wheels!

Join us for El Camino del Albariño where you will get to explore the many distinct expressions of Albariño – and surely find new favorites! The zesty acidity and natural salinity of these dry white wines from Spain and Portugal make for one of the most versatile food pairing choices in the world... come find out for yourself!

Wine on Wheels' mission is help people with disabilities experience life to the fullest and enable them to see possibility where others see insurmountable obstacles. Please visit wineonwheels.org or follow @wineonwheelsnyc on social media.