Sense of Place: Val do Salnés, Rías Baixas, Galicia, Spain

Rías Baixas has done an incredibly good job of portraying its lush vineyards and granite soils as ground zero for singular, refreshing Spanish white wines of place. It's been helped a lot in this regard by the fact that its pin-up grape, Albariño, is a charmingly vivacious variety with an ability to transmit these soils in pure wines of salty minerality and electric acidity.
Diego Ríos, recently crowned Rías Baixas Young Winemaker of the Year in Tim Atkin MW's latest report, calls the shots at the prestigious Granbazán estate, just outside the gorgeous fishing town of Cambados on the Galician coast. It was a pleasure to catch up with Diego during my recent trip to Galicia. Here, he shares his thoughts on what makes Albariño, Rías Baixas and, specifically, the Val do Salnés subregion so special.