Izar-Leku Espumoso Extra Brut 2021
Mahastiak, País Vasco, Viñedos Lacalle y Laorden (Artadi), 750 ml
Basque Breeze
- Made from the local Hondarrabi Zuri grape – you can really feel the freshness of the Atlantic in the glass.
- Lime, lemon zest and herbs combine with a salty freshness, a delicate richness and a crisp acidity.
- Perfect with oysters, seafood and anything else from the sea.
Description
This lively sparkling wine is made predominantly from the Hondarrabi Zuri grape, which originates from the Basque Country in Spain. With a crisp acidity that really packs a punch, it gives this Espumoso the perfect kick. A wine that melts on the palate like a fresh sea breeze, allowing you to literally sense the salty freshness of the Atlantic. Super-straightforward and refreshing, it offers subtle aromas of lime, lemon zest and herbs, underscored by a salty note. The subtle body it gains from two-and-a-half years of bottle ageing lends it a fascinating depth. This Espumoso pairs superbly with everything the sea has to offer.
Attributes
| Grape variety: | Hondarribi Zuri, Hondarribi Beltza |
| Producer: | Viñedos Lacalle y Laorden |
| Origin: | Spain / País Vasco |
| Other vintages: | 2022 |
| Ripening potential: | 1 to 6 years |
| Drinking temperature: | 6 to 8 °C |
| Food Pairing: | Mussels au gratin, Giant crevettes, grilled langoustines, Oysters |
| Vinification: | bottle fermentation, soft pressing, fermentation in steel tank, fermentation in wooden barrel |
| Harvest: | hand-picking |
| Maturation: | on the yeast |
| Maturation duration: | 30 months |
| Volume: | 12.5 % |
| Note: | Contains sulphites |
Viñedos Lacalle y Laorden
In 2015 the two families of Zapiain and Lopez de Lacalle launched the Izar-Leku Mahastiak project (today Grupo Artadi) in Zarautz/Basque Country, with the aim of producing a table wine as well as a sparkling wine with Txakoli as the base wine. Today this sparkling wine is part of the "Viñedos Lacalle y Laorden" company - just like the premium single-vineyard wine "Viña El Pisón", though this wine comes from the Álava/Rioja region.
Txakoli is a traditional white wine from Spain's Basque Country, made from the native grape varieties of Hondarribi Zuri (white grape, proportion approx. 90%) and Hondarribi Beltza (red grape, proportion approx. 10%), which has developed from a wine that was traditionally enjoyed in local taverns or at home in the family circle into a wine with its own "DO" and strong reputation.
Spain
Spain – Variety and perfection
“Somewhere in la Mancha, in a place whose name I do not care to remember...,” begins Don Quixote's odyssey.
The most famous part is definitely when Don Quixote thinks windmills are his enemy and wants to fight them – until they nearly kill him. It’s possible there was a bit too much of the La Mancha wine at play. Spanish vines fight for their survival in rugged landscapes, battling fierce drought and rough soils. But they fight well.
