Alella, Pansa Blanca, Garnacha, Catalunya, Spain 

What do you do when life gives you mildew? You salvage all that you can and turn it to Catalan GOLD, baby. Oriol Artigas is a kind and radical force coming out of the Spanish natural wine scene. He works with old vineyards, little intervention & sandy soils in coastal Alella – a little-known and petite appellation north of Barcelona, tousled by the Mediterranean. NOT SO FUN FACT! This was the only wine that he was able to make from his own grapes in 2020 due to brutal wet and humid weather, a more and more common occurrence as climate change affects vineyards in different ways around the world. A blend of balanced-and-bitter pansa blanca (75%, and a close relative to xarel lo), with a short maceration of darkly-spiced garnatxa negra (15%), with a 10% sprinkle of other varieties. Granite structure, smoking hay, sea spray, roseberries, pomelo zest & the feeling of hard work mixed with dumb luck. Pair with any and all seafood boils, chowders, platters & discovering something beautiful out of a tough situation.