Bodega Castro Martin, Rías Baixas Albariño A2O 2021

In the age of the global economy and multi-national companies Bodegas Castro Martin stands proudly as a business still owned and managed by the original founding family. Sadly, there are now many other wine cellars in the Rias Baixas denomination that are owned by companies based outside Galicia, as the number of family-run bodegas slowly diminishes.

The history of Castro Martin can be traced back as far as 1887 where old documents prove the existence of a wine cellar and the sale of Albariño. The current cellar was constructed in 1981 by Domingo Martin-Morales, some six years before the D.O. of Rias Baixas was actually created. The winery was the very first in the region to be equipped with stainless steel tanks for wine storage, which at that time appeared as something of an extravagance, but that have since become the norm in modern white winemaking.

Domingo also had the foresight to construct the bodega over three different levels – the top level being the grape reception for harvest, the middle level is the pressing room, and the lower level our tank storage. Owing to this thoughtful construction we are able to minimise pumping, thereby handling grapes, must and finished wine with the utmost possible care.

Wine making innovation is always at the forefront of our agenda as we constantly strive to improve the wines that we make. At the turn of the millennium, for example, we started to conduct extensive tests with top quality synthetic closures. These have since proved to be ideal for our style of wine, slowing down the evolution and helping us to capture the freshness and vivacity of albariño in the bottle. Tests continue with these closures even today as we now monitor ’oxygen transmission rate’, looking for better ways to preserve freshness and help deliver our wine to customers in optimum condition.

Terroir: A2O is sourced from 11 hectares within the family vineyards of El Pazo, Castrelo, Cunchidos and Caeiro within the Val do Salnés sub region of Rias Baixas. The vineyards sit at an elevation between 160 to 820 feet with plantings of 1100 vines per hectare. Vines average 20 to 50 years old and are trained using the Pergola system to enhance air circulation and minimize any risk of disease. Soils here are sandy with a mixture of granite and quartz.

Vinification: Grapes are hand harvested using small baskets to avoid bruising of the grapes and are then sorted upon arrival at the winery. Following a gentle pressing the juice is fermented at cool temperatures in stainless steel tanks, where it will remain, on its lees for 5 to 6 months. Wines are cold stabilized and gently filtered prior to bottling.

Sustainability:Sustainable Practices
Soil: Sand, Granite, Quartz
Vineyard Acreage:11ha
Avg Vine Age: 20-50 years
Alcohol: >13%

TASTING NOTES: A clean and intensly fresh wine that exhibits all the typical characteristics of the Albariño grape variety. Ripe and aromatic, with overtones of peach, melon and honey, offset by a crisp tangy acidity that helps to balance the rich fruit flavors. A well-rounded wine with a long, mellow, honeyed finish.

SUSTAINABLE. VEGAN. FEMALE WINEMAKER.