# La Transición Blanco (2024)

- **Producer:** Sociedad Agraria de Viticultores
- **Colour:** white
- **Type:** still
- **Grapes:** Albillo Real, Chelva, Jaén, Palomino Fino, Chasselas
- **Region:** Castilla y León, Spain
- **Style:** Natural
- **Alcohol:** 13.0%
- **Average price:** €14
- **Vegan:** Yes
- **Contains sulphites:** Yes
- **When to drink:** Now or Later
- **Serving temperature:** 8–10 °C
- **Aromas & flavours:** blossom, peach, apricot, grapefruit, herbaceous, fennel, bread, cream, dried apricot, hay, honey, almond

## About this wine

La Transición Blanco is a collaborative project between the Sociedad Agraria de Viticultores de Cebreros and winemaker Jesús María "Chuchi" Soto of Soto Manrique. Located in the rugged, high-altitude Sierra de Gredos region of Spain, this initiative was born to protect the area's ancient, low-yielding bush vines and support local growers. Historically, these mountain growers sold their premium grapes in bulk for very little. "La Transición" (The Transition) represents a shift toward bottling estate-grown, terroir-focused quality wines under a fair-trade framework, preserving the liquid heritage of Ávila.

## Interesting facts

- The wine is crafted from 70-year-old bush vines growing at extreme altitudes of up to 1,060 meters in the granitic soils of Sierra de Gredos.
- It is vinified like a red wine, undergoing 28 days of skin contact in concrete vats to create a structured, amber-hued orange wine.
- The project operates under a fair-trade framework to save historically abandoned vineyards and support local mountain growers.

## Food pairing

This skin-contact white wine behaves more like a light red on the palate, offering a gentle phenolic grip and rich texture. Its savory, mineral profile and moderate acidity make it an exceptional match for umami-rich, fermented, and moderately spiced dishes. The wine's structure cuts through rich proteins while its dried-fruit and herbal notes complement complex spices like ginger, fennel, and soy.

## Wine making process

The grapes are hand-harvested in small 25 kg crates from 70-year-old bush vines planted at altitudes up to 1,060 meters on granitic sand and slate soils. In the cellar, the grapes undergo a red-wine vinification process. After cooling and destemming, the juice undergoes 100% spontaneous fermentation with indigenous yeasts in concrete tanks. The wine is left in contact with the skins for a 28-day maceration period. Following pressing, it ages for three months on its fine lees in the same concrete vats, completely avoiding oak to preserve the pure expression of the grape skins and mountain terroir.