January 22, 2019
Founded in 1821 in Sanlúcar de Barrameda, Bodegas Barbadillo is now in the hands of the seventh-generation descendants of the founder, making it one of the oldest privately-held companies in any sector in Spain. The firm boasts 500 hectares of... UNFILTERED Archives: Spain
Aphros: Gods of the Foam
December 13, 2018
Too much Champagne lately? Sounds crazy, but I feel you. Raventós? Already got a couple cases in the basement. Cider? I like the way you’re thinking—but not today. What indeed to pop when the ball drops this year? How about…... That Obscure Object of Desire: The Sherries of Bodegas Tradición
November 6, 2018
Bodegas Tradición is located at N° 3 Calle Cordobeses in an unassuming little plaza in the Santiago Quarter of Jerez de la Frontera. Along with the San Miguel Quarter, Santiago is famous as a Gitano neighborhood. Indeed, many of the... The Lost World: Pre-Phylloxera Albariño in the Val do Salnés
September 6, 2018
We are very pleased to announce the arrival of the 2017 vintage of ‘A Cruz das Ánimas’, the Albariño from Atalier by Raúl Pérez. While this is the second vintage produced under this label, it should be considered the first... Spanish Single Vineyards: Ready to Mingle
August 3, 2018
In a world where Jurassic limestone is no longer sufficient to distinguish the climats of Burgundy (Bajocian or Bathonian, please?); in a world where German aficionados speak in hushed reverence of cadasters and Prussian taxes; in a world where the... “An Emotional Footprint”: Sara Pérez, René Barbier and Venus La Universal
July 12, 2018
As the children of two of the pioneers of the Priorat D.O., Sara Pérez and René Barbier IV grew up as neighbors, looking on as their fathers, Josep Lluis Pérez of Mas Martinet and René Barbier III of Clos Mogador,... Checking in with Raventós i Blanc
May 30, 2018
It’s been a while since we trained our eye on one of the very nearest and dearest of all estates to the collective Skurnik heart: Raventós i Blanc (aside, of course, from the adorable periodic cavorting of their farm animals... O Ribeiro: an Ode to the Forgotten Bank
February 8, 2018
The Ribeiro: would this rose by any other word smell as sweet– or even sweeter? I’m half convinced that a jazzier name alone could have worked wonders for this underappreciated denominación. As it stands, this fairly generic “Riverbank” (the literal... Finca Torremilanos: A Gem Hidden In Plain Sight
November 7, 2017
So rapid has been the rise of the Ribera del Duero’s star, so commanding its market presence of late, that it’s easy to forget its short life as a government-ratified denominación dates only to 1982. It’s not, of course, that... Avant-Garde Alavesa: Bodegas y Viñedos Artadi
September 21, 2017
The holm oak, Quercus ilex, is an evergreen oak species native to southern Europe. Part of the unique botanical patrimony of the Mediterranean, its acorns have fattened the hogs destined for the choicest hams since at least Roman times, and...