Ailalá-Ailalelo

"We didn't apply Rudolph Steiner or Fukuoka theories to get a certification. We make it this way because the vines are alive and they give the best grapes.” - Inma Pazos.

Ailalá-Ailalelo, whose name is found in traditional Galician folk songs and which means happiness (think of a variant of “Olé!), is a relatively new project, a collaboration between three expert winemakers situated in the most ancient valley in the Ribeiro DO, the Avia valley. The young oenologists behind the wines are Xosé Lois Sebio, Inma Pazos from Coto de Gomariz, and Miguel Montoto, owner of several small vineyards in the area and Inma's husband. Together they have created two wines, a white and a red,that express the incredible terroir of the region. Sábrego, the local name for the soil here, a granitic base with a mixture of sand and clay, lends a fresh and approachable style that is reflected through the biodynamically-farmed vineyards. These are remarkable wines at a fair price that show the historic potential cool-climate Spain.

“Cistercian monks laid the foundations of quality wine-growing in Ribeiro in the Middle Ages and the region’s renown grew steadily over centuries. After the disastrous 19th-century troika of oidium, mildew and phylloxera, Ribeiro subsided into a dismal backwater, planting imported high-yielding varieties (Palomino, of Sherry fame, was a favorite) and sacrificing all for quantity. Come the 1990s, a few visionaries woke again to its potential as a fine wine region, reclaiming terraces and vineyards and determined to recover its lost reputation for quality.” -Decanter, http://www.decanter.com/spain/galicia-travel-guide-639/

Click here for an excellent piece on Ailala from Jancis Robinson.