Description
Luis Anxo Rodríguez Vásquez, Ribeiro “A Teixa”
It might be a brash assertion, but I’m making it: To open a bottle of white wine bearing Luis Anxo Rodríguez Vásquez’s name is to experience the craftwork of one of the greatest underground artisans not just in Spain, but in all of Europe. Luis’ prismatic, highly distinct Treixadura blends sit comfortably alongside French elites, and today’s “A Teixa” represents the pinnacle of his spectacular lineup.
The only problem is, we hardly get to drink them anymore. Once, we could offer his wines four times a year, a number which was quickly halved, and today we’re lucky if we can secure enough to offer annually. It’s frankly no surprise: After a 60-minute decant, “A Teixa” transforms into multi-dimensional, truly singular wine with an extra layer of aromatic exoticism. This is one of our secret “hall of fame” Spanish bottlings, rightly ranked in the upper echelons of Europe’s finest whites—and it deserves every drop of the cult status it’s achieved. Get it while you can and stash some away because at this rate, it’ll be 2023/24 before we see it again!
In the course of my career, Spain has pulled off a complete 180 in terms of quality. When I first started working the floor, outside of the traditional houses in Rioja and Jerez, most of what we saw stateside was “modern,” heavily oaked booze bombs. But over the past decade, the entire country seems to have rediscovered its envious collection of vinous treasures, and nowhere is that more true than in Galicia. This cool, breezy, Atlantic-influenced corner of the country is perfect for producing tensile, mineral whites that still carry the open-fruited generosity of Spain’s sunny landscape. The market is frankly flooded these days with incredible Galician wines, many of which we’ve offered here. But Luis Rodríguez’s whites are, to put it simply, the inimitable best, and I encourage anyone who’ll listen to try them whenever the opportunity arises.
Luis Rodríguez is a native son of Ribeiro, just north of the Spanish/Portuguese border, and his dedication to the region is astounding. His entire estate is a minuscule six hectares, but it’s spread across no less than 180 micro-parcels around his hometown of Arnoia. Since 1988, he’s been converting the village’s vineyards from Palomino and Alicante Bouschet. planted decades ago for bulk wine production, to native varieties like Treixadura, Lado, and Ferrol. Luis seemingly covers every point on the great wine spectrum, from racy, mineral whites to rustic, mouth-coating reds. For my money though, “A Teixa” is his most complete, pedigreed bottling, 95% Treixadura with a splash each of Albariño and Godello from a single, tiny vineyard. Luis’ “Escolma” is more boomingly powerful, his “Os Pasas” is more searingly mineral, but “A Teixa” is my favorite. It delivers a blend of richly textured fruit, heady aromatics, and pristinely fresh minerality unique to Ribeiro whites.
As mentioned above, “A Teixa” is a bit reticent upon opening, so it requires a good hour-long decant. Treat it like great white Burgundy, served around 50 degrees in Burgundy stems after that and it is glorious. The nose quietly rolls out a uniquely Galician blend of lime zest, white pear, citrus blossoms, melon flesh, orange rind, green mango peel, seaspray, and pulverized rocks. The palate gestures towards broad textures while remaining firmly focused on detailed, delicate citrus and mineral notes, and every minute it’s exposed to oxygen it seems a new corner of the wine unfolds. Broader, richer textures show up, and the exotic fruit and mineral etchings only grow in volume. The finish is savory and salt-laden. A bottle of “A Teixa” is a genuine test of my patience because every second it’s open it gets better—and on day two, brand new flavors are introduced and it launches into an entirely new textural sphere. That patience is rewarded in the long run, too: with a few additional years of cellaring, “A Teixa” unfolds into a somehow even more kaleidoscopic, alluringly unique white.
