In 1989 a group of friends set out with
the dream of producing a range of wines true to the region from
which they hail. Seeing the huge potential in the Biscaya Hills,
they sought out the best plots across the area from which to craft
authentic Txacoli wines.
Following six years of research, Bodegas Itsasmendi was founded
in 1995 and lies along the windy road to the town of Gernika.
Working with renowned winemaker Ana MartÃn, the team use their
local knowledge and expertise to produce three distinctive
wines.
With only 30ha of vineyards and an average yeild of 7,500 to
8,500 kgs per hectare, this is very small production!
The two native varieties of the area, Hondarrabi Zuri and
Hondarrabi Zuri Zerratie (easier to say than spell!) are perfectly
suited to the local terroir and climate and produce original and
authentic Txacoli wines.
Vines are all planted facing south to ensure maximum exposure to
the sun, which is much needed in this area. With extreme weather
conditions, harvest is much later than in the neighbouring
areas.
Always innovating, Itsasmendi were the first in the region to
produce a late harvest wine, Itsasmendi Uretzi, and to introduce
Riesling into the vineyards for their Number 7 wine.