Telmo Rodriguez

COUNTRY: Spain
REGION: Galicia, Andalusia, Valencia, Castilla y Leon, Navalle
APPELLATION: Valdeorras, Malaga, Toro, Rioja, Alcante, Basa

Telmo Rodríguez is a Spanish winemaker, who aims to rediscover the taste and diversity of Spain’s lost terroirs. He has been working in full partnership with his friend and partner Pablo Eguzkiza, since 1994. Telmo Rodríguez grew up around wine. His father had acquired the iconic Bodegas Remelluri in Rioja. 

He studied winemaking at the University of Bordeaux and worked at prestigious French estates such as Cos d'Estournel in Bordeaux, Domaine Trévallon in Baux de Provence, and Domaine Louis Chave in the Northern Rhône valley. From the very beginning, they had a different vision than other winemakers in post - Franco era. They ignored the trend that leans towards the use of international varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. 

They prefer to discover the forgotten, unrepresented indigenous grape varieties and produce wine around Spain, including Arribes, Aragon, La Rioja, and Málaga in the 355 small vineyard plots which together make up eighty hectares of vines that are comprised of an astonishing number of forty-three different indigenous grape varieties and many old and ungrafted vineyards. 

They focus on wines that speak of their exceptional terroir, rather than of their winemaker. Telmo Rodríguez is a passionate advocate of terroir-based winemaking, which means respecting and expressing the characteristics of the soil, climate, and grape variety in each wine. He trusts his viticultural partners and employs minimalistic winemaking, avoiding excessive extraction, filtration, and manipulation, and letting the wine evolve naturally. Telmo is focused on quality rather than quantity and limits the amount of wine that is made.