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Bodegas Chaves
Established in 1955, Chaves was one of the first wineries to establish Albariño vineyards in the Rías Baixas
Bodegas Chaves
DO Rías Baixas, Spain
Despite now being ubiquitous with Galicia’s Rías Baixas region, until the 20th Century, Albariño plantings were sporadic, found mainly in small plots owned by monasteries and convents.
In the 1940s, the Chaves family made their own wine to sell in their wine tavern.
At a family gathering in 1962, Cándido Chaves’s great-uncle showed him a century-old vine of a white variety called Albariño in his garden. Recognising its potential, Cándido grafted this vine into his Fornos vineyard, 26 years before the foundation of the DO Rías Baixas.
The winery continued to make history by becoming the first winery to harvest Albariño in Cambados after the establishment of the DO Rías Baixas in 1988, before winning the first award for an Albariño from the region at the INTERVIN wine competition in Barcelona in 1990.
The winery, still in the hands of the Chaves family, continues to produce award-winning Albariño from 100% estate-owned vineyards.
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Castel de Fornos Albariño
The winery’s flagship wine, named after the family’s first vineyard, located on dry, stony slopes in the village of Fornos.
Made using first press juice and vinified in stainless steel to preserve all the aromatic properties of the grape, it displays complex floral notes of gardenia, rose, orange blossom followed by ripe fruit aromas – apricot and orange peel – with a background of herbs (laurel, anise, mint) and a delicate hint of honey.
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