2020 Bodegas Gratias ¿Y TU DE QUIÉN ERES? Blanco

Region: Manchuela < Castilla La Mancha < Spain                  

Grapes: Tardana, Macabeo, Marisancho, Doña Blanca, Albillo , Blanquilla

Vineyard/Cellar Stats: Certified biodynamic farming; white, chalky, limestone soils + clay-calcareous soils; each varietal gets its own treatment, a mix of whole cluster and de-stemmed with fermentation and aging in clay amphoras (tinajas), then the juice is blended and rests 3 months on the lees; bottled unfined/unfiltered with zero-added So2; 13% ABV

Winemaker: Ana Gómez, Ivan Gómez, Silvia Araque

In the hot, dry region of Manchuela, inland from Valancia, you'll find the small family farm called Bodegas Gratias, founded by a brother and sister and their spouses.  When siblings Ana and Iván got together for a party with some oenologist friends in 2007, they decided to make some wine and put it in a barrel, loved the results, and thus Bodegas Gratias was born. The family is passionate about biodynamic farming indigenous grapes to the region, many of which are grown nowhere else in the world. And the wines are artisanal as they come, from organic farming, fermented with natural occurring yeasts and minute sulphur additions, if any.

After the success of the first vintage, they realized they had a chance to make a difference.  In a region with a declining wine industry, Ana and Iván are on a mission to protect old vineyards of Bobal and other local varieties, championing the vinous heritage of the area. So they started a Crowdfund campaign to raise funds and buy grapes from neighbors' backyard vineyards to rescue these often abandoned and unloved grapes and make this (and also a red) blend 'community wine'.  The name translates into "And whose (backyard) are you from?", which is the typical village question.  

This rich, salty Blanco is a blend of several white grapes from old plots that were about to be ripped out, along with a handful of other (mostly unknown) white varieties from neglected mixed plots of old vines (80-100 years old!) in neighboring villages.  The different grapes get different fermentation treatments, a mix of whole bunch, amphora, direct press and barrel.  The result is a layered, complex with with a lemon curd richness, cut by a chalky texture and rocky, salty finish.  Your dream Spanish white wears a winter coat!