Fillaboa, the Rías Baixas winery belonging to the Masaveu Wineries group, has just been recognized at the 2020 International Wine and Women Competition with the Gran Diamond medal for La Fillaboa 1898 2010 and the Diamond medal for Fillaboa Selección Finca Monte Alto 2017 in the ‘Still White Wines’ category.
This competition, now in its thirteenth edition, is unique in that it is the first global wine contest that highlights the role of women, with a jury composed entirely of women. It also awards the best wines produced by wineries with a high female participation. This is the case of Fillaboa Wineries, where oenologist Isabel Salgado has been working for over 20 years at this Galician winery, which is managed by José Masaveu and is part of the Grandes Pagos de España Association.
““It’s always an honor to see your work recognized, but this particular recognition means a lot to me as it is a competition created by and for women. Everyone involved in this project feels very proud, and we are truly grateful for this award.” “, explains Salgado.
A total of 122 different wines from 45 different wine-producing regions participated in this edition of the competition. Although the majority of the participants were from Spain, wines from countries like Chile, Mexico, Italy, Portugal, and Slovenia also took part. In total, 37 awards were granted, divided into three Grand Diamond medals, 17 Diamond medals, 14 Ruby medals, and three Emerald awards. The award ceremony will take place next November at the Auditorium of the Madrid Chamber of Commerce.
Fillaboa Selección Finca Monte Alto 2017 It comes from the Monte Alto plot, one of the most emblematic parcels of the Fillaboa estate. The wine is made using traditional methods, employing selected native yeasts and keeping the wine on fine lees for 12 months in stainless steel tanks. This is a great aromatic Albariño, fresh, with tremendous aging potential, structured and complex.
For its part, La Fillaboa 1898 is an exclusive wine from the 2010 vintage. It comes from the best grapes of eight plots and has spent six years aging on fine lees, giving this Albariño a volume and roundness on the palate, which is hard to find in this type of wine. In addition, it maintains the freshness of young Albariños while enhancing the complexity and elegance of great white wines. This wine recalls the 19th century, when a wine called “Vino del Condado de Fillaboa” was already being shipped by boat from this estate located in the Condado de Tea, in Rías Baixas, near Portugal, to Cuba. In honor of those historic voyages, Fillaboa Wineries decided in 2017 to release this wine, which had been aging on its lees since 2010.
Fillaboa Wineries
Fillaboa is a historic manor whose estate has remained indivisible over the centuries, making it one of the largest, most beautiful, and oldest estates in Galicia, and the only one that, due to its special characteristics, belongs to Grandes Pagos de España. Behind the 1,600 meters of the thick stone wall that protects the estate lie, in addition to the vineyards, the winery and a spectacular restored manor house.
54 hectares of Albariño grape vineyards planted on rolling slopes make up the Fillaboa estate, which spans a total of 74 hectares spread across 12 plots on the natural border with Portugal, alongside the Tea and Miño rivers. The rich soils and the Atlantic climate, with mild temperatures due to the proximity to the sea, make Fillaboa a privileged place for the cultivation of the native Albariño grape.
Masaveu Wineries
The Masaveu family began investing in the wine sector in 1974, when they acquired Bodegas Murua, but the family’s vineyard plantings date back to the mid-19th century, specifically in Castellar del Vallés, the family’s place of origin, where Federico Masaveu Rivell laid the foundations that his descendants would continue a century later.
Since then, Masaveu Wineries has grown to become a benchmark in the sector, known for the quality of its wines produced in different DOs and for the environmental philosophy they uphold, as well as their utmost respect for the land. They own their own vineyards, which allow them to convey the unique personality of each terroir in every bottle. In this way, all the projects embarked upon by Masaveu Wineries in different parts and regions of the country share a common denominator: Murua (DOCa Rioja), Fillaboa (DO Rías Baixas), Pagos de Araiz (DO Navarra), Leda (Vino de la Tierra de Castilla y León), and Valverán (Asturias).
