Winery Info

Bodegas Valdesil

It all began in 1885 when an ancestor of the Prada family, passionately believing in the nobility of the Godello grape variety, planted the first vines on the high, slatey hillsides of the Sil valley.

The winemaking tradition of the family originated with the beloved person of José Ramón Gayoso, vinegrower at Portela. Contrary to the custom of the time he established the first vineyard planted entirely with Godello, being convinced of the potential of this variety, which is native to Valdeorras. Little by little he expanded these small parcels of vines, or ‘Pezas’, carefully choosing the best sites around and about Portela. In subsequent years many of these parcels were sold to other growers, leaving only the Pedrouzos estate. In 2001 the current generation of the family began to buy back the small vineyards which had belonged to their forebear, spurred on by the possibilities offered by the grape variety, the special qualities of the Valdeorras region, and the lasting influence of that original pioneer who went against the spirit of the age in planting Pedrouzos, the oldest Godello vineyard in Galicia.

All the Godello ‘pezas’ planted by Pradas in the past have been recovered and incorporated into the family estate. Thanks to this, we have been able to carry out our own clonal selection and adopt techniques unusual in Galician viticulture, such as managing plant cover.

Today, thanks to our restored heritage and an excellent team of professionals, we are producing elegant and distinctive wines with an unmistakable personality which perfectly reflects their origin and grape variety.

Region Info

Valdeorras

The DO of Valdeorras is situated at the gateway to Galicia in the east of the region. It is made up of three towns: A Rúa, Villamartín and O Barco. The River Sil, which flows from east to west through the DO, is the dominant feature on the landscape. Valdeorras is situated around 150km from the coast and the climate is the most continental of all the DOs of Galicia.

In recent years there has been a lot of excitement surrounding the white Godello grape which has been rediscovered as a variety of great personality and positioned as the region’s star performer. Godello is now to Valdeorras what Albariño is to the Rías Baixas.

Wines made from Godello are generally medium-bodied and therefore more structured than those made from Albariño making them very food friendly. They offer plenty of lemony fruit, a fresh mineral character thanks to the region’s slate soils and great persistence. Godello wines are usually unoaked and youthful but some producers offer barrel-fermented styles and they are capable of ageing.

There is a red partner for this white variety which is showing good potential here: Mencía, a red grape which is increasingly coming into focus in many of the DOs of north west Spain. In the Valdeorras DO producers generally make a young red from Mencía which is light bodied by Spanish standards. It is sometimes blended with other red varieties such as Garnacha Tintorera or Cabernet Sauvignon.

Country Info

Spain
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