Eulogio Pomares is the viticulturist and winemaker at Zarate in Rias Baixas, Spain, and he has also his own project, Grandes Vinos Desiguales.

He makes two wines, both from Albariño: a skin contact white, and this, his Crianza Oxidativa. The unusual conditions of 2011 meant that the grapes failed to accumulate sugar in the normal way. So harvest was delayed until December 1st, and the resulting wine had an astonishingly high acidity of 10.5 g/litre, which would be extreme even in Champagne. So Eulogio aged the wine for three years in tank, but there’s no malolactic fermentation. During this process it developed a light flor on the top, and so it has a small degree of oxidative development. It’s a beautiful, nuanced, delicious wine of real interest. Quite profound.

UK agent is Indigo Wine

Eulogio Pomares Albariño Crianza Oxidativa 2011 Rías Baixas, Spain
12.5% alcohol. Yellow/gold in colour, this has a lovely nose of ripe apples, herbs and lemons, with hints of honey and wax. The palate is quite profound, with a lovely textured citrus fruit character, a touch of lemon peel, some pink grapefruit and a touch of nuttiness. But the most amazing thing is the acidity: it’s just so keen and intense with a mouth-watering quality. But there’s no harshness to it: it’s perfectly integrated into the wine. The finish persists for ages. The acidity is still just as high, but the ageing process has integrated it. A thrilling wine. 95/100

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