Edetària Selecció Blanc 2021 is a beautiful wine produced from Garnacha Blanca also known as Garnacha Blanc in its native Catalonia. Most people know it as Grenache Blanca. I have missed a couple of vintages of this wine but my extensive searches for a Garnacha Blanca as complex and well-made as this one have led me right back to Edetària for a number of reasons. Firstly the vines are between 60 and 90 years old at Edetària and grapes from old vines add to complexity and structure. In the Terra Alta appellation that Edetària Selecció Blanc 2021 is from soils are mainly limestone which is not a bad thing at all. However this wine comes from a few pockets of “panal” soils in the vineyards which are essentially fossilised sand dunes meaning that very low yields are produced intensifying flavours in the wine.
Edetària Selecció Blanc 2021 is an organic wine, fairly full-bodied and full of fruit flavours – apple, pear, citrus fruits with floral and mineral notes and more. What strikes me most is the lovely silky texture. This wine regularly wins awards; a previous vintage was rated number 1 in Decanter magazines top 10 Terra Alta wines. This 2021 vintage has its own high scores and accolades – see Awards tab. It really is a fine wine. Complex and mineral aromas with hydrocarbon notes. Powerful palate, balanced with a well integrated acidity that will bring to the wine a long life. Full bodied, silky, long, persistent and elegant.
For a relatively new addition to the Spanish white wine selection, try Val do Galir Godello.
This wine is great on its own. Given its body and structure it will also match well with a range of foods including seafood generally, shellfish, fish including fish ceviche or tartare, sushi, smoked salmon and smoked trout and it will cope well with richer dishes in creamy sauce.
Serve at 10 – 12°C
“Complex TDN aromas and mineral nuances. Full-bodied entry, which is balanced with a well-integrated acidity, displaying a velvety, persistent, elegant palate and a very long finish.” (TDN is the abbreviation for the name of the kerosene-type aroma compounds that develop in some wines)
95 points & Wine of the Year – Tim Atkins MW
93 Points – RobertParker.com
“The old-vines selection of Garnacha Blanca, the 2021 Selecció was produced with grapes from eight separate plots of vines ranging from 60 to 90 years of age, on sandy panal (fossil dune) soils. It fermented with indigenous yeasts in stainless steel and matured in 500- and 600-liter French oak barrels and clay amphorae for eight months. It’s clean, varietal, elegant and nuanced, with integrated oak and complex aromas of lees, yeasts, fruit and flowers. It has a vibrant palate that is precise and clean, with good ripeness and volume, 14.5% alcohol and great freshness that makes it very balanced and tasty. It finishes with a bitter twist.”
James Suckling
“An intriguing and vibrant nose of glazed pineapple, candied oranges, beeswax and exotic spices. Medium- to full-bodied, structured and lightly chew, with a very fine texture and racy acidity. The spiciness and orange peel notes come through the whole length of the wine, adding to its ripe but crunchy fruit. A tense and exotic white with good length. 100% garnatxa blanca. From organically grown grapes. Drink or hold.”