Not one to be a pinhead, when offered a 2006 Gaba do Xil from Spain by a distributor rep named Jeb while in Highlands, NC, why I couldn’t just pass it up could I? Huh?
To give respect, Jeb (who actually looked Italian) knew his stuff and was very good about explaining the wines we were tasting that day and I was very impressed with this Spanish white grape from the Valdeorras region called “Godello.” It had a very aromatic honeydew melon, mango, lemon and light straw on the nose and made me think of a cross between Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay, if you can imagine that. It was a light, golden color and high reflectivity (meaning high acid), with lime, lemon and slight mineral on the taste.
This wine is made by the very down-to-earth and very busy, Telmo Rodriguezwho produces no less than 20 wines in more than 10 different regions across the country including Rioja, Ribera del Duero, Rueda, Toro, Alicante, Málaga, Navarra, La Mancha, Galicia and Cigales. Additionally, the particular vineyard this fruit was sourced from is farmed biodynamically on an old Roman terraced, rocky vineyard and was picked 100% by hand.
