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Simplesmente… Vinho 2026 I – Morrazo and Salnés

Published 9. March 2026 by Vidar Kenneth Johansen

This year Simplesmente Vinho highlighted wines from neighbouring Galicia. One of the tastings focused on “iconic wines”, offering a glimpse of the diversity of the region. It also showed that ageing wines over many years can be complicated. Bottles evolve differently, and even well-known wines can show variation. Still, the tasting gave a vivid impression of the Galician vitality. Here are some of my favourite wines from the albariño stronghold.

Antonio Portela never ceases to impress with his wines from the Morrazo peninsular seashore. The maritime influence is unmistakable, bringing a saline freshness that runs through the range. Area Brava, named after the beach, and O Mare Namorado are both strong representatives of his work. Here I chose a wine with plenty of personality that I have not highlighted before: Solpor 2023, a rosé made from tinta femia and fermented in damajuanas. The colour is delicate onion skin or faint peach. The aroma combines strawberry and peach with hints of white orchard fruit. On the palate the wine is light but expressive, with lively acidity carrying the fruit through the finish. The texture is supple and refreshing, and the low alcohol – just 9% – gives it an effortless drinkability.

Then a strong trio from the Val do Salnés subzone of Rías Baixas.

From Nanclares y Prieto, Alberto Nanclares continues to produce super-mineral whites alongside increasingly stylish reds. Soverribas 2024, a parcel wine, is a fine example. It is pale and finely drawn, with aromas of apple and citrus. On the palate it is vibrant and precise, showing lively acidity and a distinct stony minerality that lingers on the finish. The wine feels airy and transparent, yet with enough depth to give it structure.

At Zárate, Eulogio Pomares continues his impressive work with terroir-oriented, mineral wines that emphasise vineyard character. Just before the festival I had an off bottle of Balado, which made it particularly important to see the wine in proper form. This time the 2024 vintage showed beautifully. After three months on lees without bâtonnage, the wine is light in colour yet remarkably intense. The nose is very fresh, while the palate combines concentration with energy, finishing with a clear saline edge that reflects its coastal origin.

Finally, Miguel Alfonso of Pedralonga produces wines of remarkable elegance, both white and red. I have highlighted his “normal” whites before. Marel 2023, aged for a year in amphora, shows a golden colour with a slight amber hue. Aromas of orange peel and dried citrus lead into a deep palate with gentle tannin and a broad, textured finish. Despite the amphora ageing the wine retains clarity and lift, with freshness balancing the richer tones from skin contact.

What these wines share – and what I value most in wines from this part of Galicia – is their mineral, fresh and subtly saline style. The Atlantic presence is unmistakable, giving the wines both tension and drinkability, and tying together very different interpretations of the region’s vineyards.

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Wine of the Week

From the heart of Rhône

Published 6. March 2026 by Vidar Kenneth Johansen

The name Mon Coeur – “my heart” – is not chosen lightly. This cuvée is Jean-Louis Chave’s personal tribute to the southern Rhône.

The blend is dominated by grenache with syrah and mourvèdre, sourced from vineyards around Vinsobres, Visan and neighbouring villages. Fermentation is followed by ageing in a combination of concrete and large oak casks.

The wine was enjoyed in Madrid, at La Caníbal of Lavapiés, and fitted perfectly with their take on the Beef Wellington.

Mon Coeur 2023 (Jean-Louis Chave)

Deep ruby with a youthful purple rim. Generous aromas of dark cherries, blackberries and crushed herbs, with a touch of pepper and garrigue. The palate is supple yet structured, with ripe fruit, fresh acidity and finely grained tannins that give the wine both charm and depth.

This is a wine with warmth and a sense of terroir, a southern Rhône seen through the lens of one of the valley’s most thoughtful producers. A bottle that proves how much character can live within the humble designation Côtes du Rhône.

Price: Medium

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Wine of the Week

Uva de Vida at Bendito

Published 27. February 2026 by Vidar Kenneth Johansen

Whenever I am in the center of Madrid I try to find time for a visit to Bar Bendito in the Mercado de San Fernando. This time I was served three wines and some tasty bites.

One of the wines was Biográfico Graciano y Tempranillo. Biográfico is produced by Uva de Vida, the biodynamic project of Carmen López Delgado and Luis Ruiz in Santa Olalla, Toledo, in the countryside south of Madrid. The vineyards lie on sandy and clay-limestone soils, where organic farming is not a marketing slogan but a working philosophy. Everything here is cultivated biodynamically, with a strong commitment to soil life and ecological balance.

The wine blends two classic Spanish varieties: Tempranillo and graciano. Tempranillo provides the structure and dark fruit, while graciano contributes freshness, aromatic lift and a slightly wild edge that keeps the wine vibrant.
Fermentation takes place with native yeasts, followed by ageing in a mix of concrete and neutral vessels that preserve the fruit rather than marking the wine with oak. The result is a wine that feels both energetic and grounded.

Biográfico Graciano y Tempranillo 2022 (Uva de Vida)

Dark cherry colour. The aroma also shows dark cherries, woth crushed herbs and a hint of spice. On the palate it is supple but precise, with fine tannins and a lively acidity that carries the fruit through to a long, savoury finish.

Price: Low

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Wine of the Week

Homemade wine at Gota

Published 20. February 2026 by Vidar Kenneth Johansen

Last night at Gota, the tiny bar in Madrid’s Chueca district, I was poured a glass of Bailando en el Filo 2024 by Victoria Sánchez, one half of the duo behind Pequeños y Salvajes. On an earlier visit it was Nahuel Ibarra who stood behind the bar. It seems only fitting that their wine appears in a place that shares their spirit: small, lively and a little wild.

The wine comes from El Tiemblo in the Sierra de Gredos, a landscape of old vines and granite soils that has become one of the most exciting sources of Garnacha in central Spain. It’s made by carbonic maceration.

Bailando en el Filo — “dancing on the edge” — is an apt name. The wine has that same sense of balance and risk. There is something refreshingly unforced about it, almost as if the wine were being made in the moment. It feels improvised, like music played without a written score — yet guided by instinct and intuition.

Bailando en el Filo 2024 (Pequeños y Salvajes)

Light ruby red. Bright red berries, wild herbs and a faint earthy note rise from the glass. The palate is lively and finely textured, with freshness and lightness carrying the wine effortlessly forward. Serious glou-glou.

Price: Low

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Wine of the Week

Structured and saline single plot albariño

Published 13. February 2026 by Vidar Kenneth Johansen

Zárate is one of Rías Baixas’ historic estates, with records dating back to the 18th century. Today the project is guided by Eulogio Pomares, whose work in Val do Salnés has helped redefine albariño as a serious, terroir-driven wine capable of ageing with grace.

The fruit for Tras da Viña comes from a single vineyard planted in 1970 on decomposed granite soils typical of the Salnés Valley. The Atlantic influence is unmistakable here: humidity, cooling breezes and slow ripening, giving tension and aromatic precision.

The grapes are hand-harvested, fermented with indigenous yeasts and aged for an extended period on fine lees without bâtonnage. The long élevage builds texture and depth while preserving the saline backbone that defines the site.

Tras da Viña 2021 (Zárate)

Pale golden, brilliant. The nose is refined and mineral, with white blossom, lemon peel and a faint herbal edge. On the palate it is taut, layered, with citrus, green apple and crushed stone. It finishes long and saline. Albariño with structure and charm.

Price: Medium

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Wine of the Week

Generous Rioja garnacha

Published 6. February 2026 by Vidar Kenneth Johansen

Víctor Ausejo is based in the village of Alberite, where the river Irégua flows past before joining the Ebro near Logroño. We’re in a transitional zone towards lower Rioja, where garnacha is in fact a key grape, well adapted to heat, drought and alluvial soils.

Everything here is farmed organically, and all work is carried out by hand.

The Los Pepones vineyard lies in the village of Sojuela, at 650 metres above sea level on the foothills of the Moncalvillo mountains. Planted in 1951, it measures just 0.36 hectares. The soils are sandy clay, and the vines are trained as free-standing en vaso, typical of old Spanish vineyards.

The grapes are destemmed and cold-macerated for three days before spontaneous fermentation in stainless steel. The wine is then aged in used French and Hungarian barrels and bottled unfiltered.

Garnacha Tinta 2021 (Víctor Ausejo Viticultor)

Fairly deep red with a bluish rim. Generous, sweet-toned fruit (the alcohol kept just in check), red and dark berries (raspberry, blackberry), flowers, spice and aniseed. Plenty of tannin without aggression, an earthy touch, refreshing acidity, good concentration and length.

Price: High

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Wine of the Week

Beautiful light-extracted garnacha

Published 30. January 2026 by Vidar Kenneth Johansen

From the windswept heights of Valdejalón in Aragón, Frontonio redefines what garnacha can be. Founded by winemaker Fernando Mora and partners, the project focuses on high-altitude vineyards, many of them old bush vines rooted in slate and limestone soils. Extraction is careful; freshness is more important.

La Cerqueta comes from a single, historic vineyard planted at around 600–700 metres above sea level. The vines, trained en vaso (gobelet), are dry-farmed. Fermentation takes place with indigenous yeasts, and the wine is aged in large oak foudres and older barrels to preserve purity of fruit and the subtle mineral imprint of the site.

La Cerqueta 2022 (Frontonio)

Beautifully translucent, pale ruby colour with a delicate garnet rim. On the nose, it opens with wild strawberries, redcurrant and crushed pomegranate, followed by dried herbs, white pepper and a distinct stony nuance. The palate is finely etched and vibrant, with bright acidity carrying red berry fruit across a supple texture. Tannins are silky and integrated, and the finish lingers with notes of rosehip, blood orange and a gentle saline touch.

Price: Medium

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Wine of the Week

From the Mendoza side

Published 23. January 2026 by Vidar Kenneth Johansen

Here is one of the best value wines from our varietal tasting. It’s a malbec with a lighter touch, drinkability and sense of fun, crafted by winemakers Maricruz Antolin and Liliana Suarez of Bodegas Krontiras.

The grapes come from Luján de Cuyo in Mendoza, grown on alluvial soils. Vines are just over ten years old and densely planted. Fermented and matured without oak, the aim here is immediacy — a malbec styled with a nod to Beaujolais rather than the classic, muscular Mendoza stereotype.

MiKron Malbec 2023 (Bod. Krontiras)

Bright, dark ruby in the glass. The nose is fresh and fruity, packed with blackberries and ripe cherries. On the palate it’s juicy, supple and effortlessly drinkable, with soft tannins and plenty of dark red and black fruit. A proper crushable, porch-pounding red.

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Wine of the Week

From the Cahors side

Published 16. January 2026 by Vidar Kenneth Johansen

We are in Cahors, in the French Sud-Oest. Here is a 100% malbec (auxerrois locally) from a single 1.2-hectare parcel beside a cherry orchard. The vines are around 40 years old, planted on red clay over limestone. Certified organic and moving towards biodynamics, with yields kept to 35–40 hl/ha.

At Château Combel la Serre, Julien Ilbert represents a new generation in Cahors. Vines have been in the Ilbert family for generations, though grapes were long sold to the local co-operative. Julien struck out on his own in 1998, and an early collaboration with Mathieu Cosse helped shape his focus on high-quality fruit before he returned fully to producing his own wines in 2005.

Today the estate covers 25 hectares, all planted to malbec across varied terroirs within five kilometres of the cellar. Julien believes it is the only grape suited to his vision for Cahors, deliberately avoiding both traditional blending grapes and fashionable Bordeaux varieties. Organic certification arrived with the 2015 vintage, following a decisive break with chemical farming after the death of his grandfather — a turning point in the family’s approach to agriculture.

The fruit is hand-harvested, mostly destemmed, ferments with indigenous yeasts at cool temperatures in cement, followed by around 20 days of maceration. Aged for 14 months in cement, bottled unfiltered and with minimal sulphur.

The wine was served in our local wine club, at a tasting of malbecs from both sides of the Atlantic. While the Argentinians in general showed more upfront fruit and immediate appeal, the French felt more earthy and grounded, maybe more serious. Both versions were good and often with a good quality for the price.

Au Cerisier 2022 (Combel la Serre)

Deep ruby. Aromas of sour cherry, black plum and violets, with notes of earth and crushed stone. The palate is supple and fresh, fruit-driven, with fine-grained tannins and a cool, savoury finish.

Price: Medium

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Wine of the Week

Fitapreta’s Palpite

Published 9. January 2026 by Vidar Kenneth Johansen

Palpite is a personal wine from Fitapreta, the Alentejo project led by António Maçanita. Based just outside Évora, Fitapreta works with old vineyards, local grape varieties and a deep engagement with the region’s viticultural heritage. Palpite is driven by intuition – the name translates as “hunch”.

The grapes come from Alentejo, with a focus on cooler, higher-lying vineyards that bring definition and balance. Indigenous Portuguese varieties are fermented with care, extraction is measured, and élevage is restrained.

The cork contains the phrase TCA free. I don’t know if this is meant to be a prophecy or if it’s really treated in a special way to protect against cork taint.

Palpite 2022 (Fitapreta)

Bright, translucent ruby in appearance. The nose shows red cherry, wild strawberry and dried Mediterranean herbs, with a subtle savoury edge and gentle spice. On the palate, the wine is fresh and finely textured, with vibrant red fruit, refined tannins and an underlying earthy note. Harmonious and engaging, finishing clean and dry.

Price: Medium

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