Although many believe that txakoli, a white wine originally from the Basque Country (Spain), is a relatively recent invention, the truth is that vines have been cultivated in this northern Spanish region for a long time. Factors like the industrial revolution, phylloxera and cultural, social and economic issues meant the amount of vineyards, which had been around for thousands of years, reduced by half. However, in the 80’s, a group of farmers who were keen to recover their winemaking roots started working hard to produce a quality txakoli. This resurgence has resulted in Atlantic, fresh and varietal wines that are completely different from those made previously. This is the philosophy of Doniene Gorrondona, a winery located in the town of Bakio (Vizcaya), which, without having a family winemaking tradition, is completely committed to recovering the village’s abandoned vineyards, focusing on understanding the soils, climate variation and grape characteristics. As a result, they produce some top quality txakolis that are winning people over all around the world.
Their Doniene Gorrondona Iri is a single-variety wine made with the native Hondarrabi Zuri variety planted in 2009 on complex, poor soils with a markedly acidic character. This is a marvellous spot lying 250 metres above sea level where they respectfully use techniques from the past. In the winery, the grapes are destemmed and undergo a brief maceration. Then the free-run juice ferments with native yeasts and ages on lees in stainless steel tanks. Finally, the wine is bottled without adding sulphites.
This is how they make Doniene Gorrondona Iri, one of the most interesting txakolis of recent times from the D.O. Bizkaiko Txakolina. A mature and complex white wine that adds proof to The New York Times critic Eric Asimov’s latest statement about txacoli: “The most seductive Spanish wines in the USA.”