One of Valdesil’s soil-specific bottlings, Pezas de Portela is grown on the family’s historic “pezas” (plots) on the pure slate slopes around the parish of Portela (Vilamartín de Valdeorras). These parcels, at an average altitude of 500 metres, were planted by José Ramón Gayoso’s sons in the early 1900s using cuttings from the Pedrouzos vineyard.
For those unaccustomed to the finest expressions of Godello, this is an eye-opening white. The palate is taut yet layered, long, and finely etched with juicy citrus and stone-fruited succulence. It has an intensity and precision that is far from common in the white wines of Spain; far better to compare it to a white Burgundy (where it might be from the cool, rocky slopes of Saint-Aubin). The grapes undergo about 12 hours of skin contact before natural fermentation in various oak vessels, predominantly 600-litre (third or fourth use) and 2,000-litre vats. No malolactic conversion. Try not to serve this too cold and, if possible, serve it in a big glass – with air, each sip takes on more creamy, nutty depth and mineral energy. A superb, engaging white that fans out across the palate.