2016 Rafael Palacios Godello Sorte O Soro

I had high expectations for the 2016 Sorte O Soro, one of my favorite modern unfortified white wines in Spain. The wines have gained precision in the last few years, and I was curious to see in which direction this O Soro was going. This comes from a single plot of old-vine Godello planted in 1978 on a north-facing, sandy granite amphitheater at 710 meters in altitude. The vineyard is organically farmed and is in the process of being certified by Demeter. The must fermented in new 500-liter oak barrels with indigenous yeasts and had an élevage of seven months with the fine lees in those barrels. However, there is no oak to be found on the nose or in the flavors, and it’s fragrant, subtle and elegant with aromas of white flowers with the coldness of granite. It feels like an updated version of the 2014, silky and elegant but also very intense with pungent and persistent flavors and a strong saline sensation on the finish that lingers in your mouth for a very long time. Vibrant, electric, intense, regal and noble, with great purity, this is one of the finest white wines produced in Spain. This is the stuff that dreams are made of. 2,800 bottles were filled in September 2017.

I found the wines to be very pure, serious and a little closed and reticent, as they took time to open up in the glass and evolve very slowly. They seem to have gained precision in the last few years, and they reckon it’s through viticulture, working organically and removing all the chemicals that had been used in the vineyards before they took them over. They have not really reduced the amount of oak, but it feels much better integrated. They have also been able to reduce the amount of sulfur used on the vines. This is one of the best white wine-only projects in Spain