JOSE GARCIA Unculin Blanco Godello y Doña Blanca

More from The Wine Advocate - Luis Gutierrez

José Antonio García said, "We wanted to give our largest-volume wine at the winery, UnCulín, a boost. We've worked with shorter macerations (just under 20 days), preserved a little more fruit and sought crisper textures by incorporating 15% white varietals. In addition, for this vintage, we're using a higher percentage of stems. For the whites, we're aging all of them for a year on their lees without bâtonnage."

When it comes to vintages, "Every year, we realize that everything revolves around the harvest date. Deciding when to start isn't easy, especially when you rely solely on your own intuition and knowledge of the environment. Minimal intervention in the winery is the result of consistent work in the vineyard throughout the year. It's very important to observe and analyze the vineyard's cycles to understand the needs of each plot."

He works the same 150 micro-plots that make the 20 hectares of vineyards in Valtuille de Abajo and Corullón and produces an average of 75,000 bottles per vintage.

Published: Jul 10, 2025

Region Notes

Jose works 29 parcels in Valtuille de Abajo, in the heart of Bierzo and where his vines are at their youngest at 80 years and oldest at around 120 and perhaps even more excitingly, several hectares in the region of Corullon. This is exciting for two reasons; first the vines here are planted on near vertical slopes in the most amazing valley and second; he and Palacios are the only two growers to have vineyards in this commune.

Bierzo has adopted a new quality-based classification system for its wines, closely following the Burgundian structure of regional, village, and single-vineyard wines. In the Vino de Villa classification system, 100% of the grapes must come from vineyards within the village of Valtuille, and yields are more than 20% below the limit for D.O. Bierzo. Other quality-conscious regulations have been implemented that now make the Bierzo appellation a leading producer of fine wine in not only Spain but in the whole of Europe.

Vineyard Notes

Because of the orography of Valtuille, due to littles slopes, soils changes on each vineyard. There are vineyards with clay soils, but also few sandy areas and at the top of the slopes with galets. This lastest soils are very poor, which makes the plant work all the time. As a result, we have very low yields but high quality grapes.

Winemaking Notes

Unculín Blanco comes from an organically-grown, family-owned, single vineyard called Hundiñias in the center of Valtuille de Abajo; planted with 60 to 100-year-old traditional bush vines. With some vines in Valtuille over 100 years old, their vineyards provide an unspoiled genetic window to an era before modern clones were selected for higher yields. It’s one thing to produce wines naturally; it’s another thing entirely to produce naturally-made wine from old-vine vineyards like these, which are among the oldest in Europe. The viticulture is strictly organic, and the only compost used is local, organic chestnuts, which grow in the vineyards. 

After hand-harvesting in small crates and a selection process in the vineyard, the grapes are destemmed and slowly crushed in a vertical press. Each variety is vinified separately by spontaneous fermentation with native yeasts. The godello grapes macerate with the skins for 24 hours without temperature control before being pressed. Half of the godello juice was left to settle and fermented in stainless steel tanks. The other half was fermented in used 500L French oak barrels with the gross lees. The doña blanca was fermented in a used, large oval French oak foudre. No malolactic fermentation. After fermentation, the wine is blended and rests for eight months in stainless steel tanks before bottling.

Technical Notes

Age of Vineyards: 1900-1940
Soil: clay and rock
Altitude: 500 - 550 m
Village: Valtuille de Abajo
Grapes: 70% Godello / 30% Doña Blanca
Vine Age: Vineyards planted between 1920 and 1940
Soil: Clay and sandy loam with stone
Vinification: 24hr skin maceration for the godello. Spontaneous fermentation with indigenous yeasts in used 500L French oak barrels, large used French foudres, and stainless steel tanks
Aging: Eight months on the fine lees without stirring in stainless steel tanks
Farming: Practicing Organic
Vegan: Yes