Wine of the Week! 8/20/19

Basa Lore Getariako Txakolina

Regularly $13.99/On sale for $11.96

The name Basa Lore translates as "forest flower" 

This family-owned winery was established in 1930 in the Getariako Txakolina DO, just west of San Sebastian, the culinary epicenter of Spain.  Unlike much of Spain, the climate is cool and wet, but the salty winds from the Bay of Biscay keep the fruit dry, and the trellised vines are constantly trimmed to keep the bunches exposed to the sun.  The grapes grown here are indigenous to the Basque region; most prominently a white grape called Hondarrabi Zuri, with much smaller plantings of the red Hondarrabi Beltza, which is largely blended into the white wines.  The wine itself is, somewhat confusingly, called both Txakoli and Txakolina, and you will even sometimes see it by its Castillian name: Chacolí. It is a fresh, bright wine, not unlike a Muscadet in its perfection for seafood, but with a slight (completely natural) spritziness and a unique salinity.  In the local pintxos (a kind of Basque tapas) bars, the wine is poured from great heights into tumblers to boost the spritzy freshness.  
The vast proportion of Txakolina is consumed in Basque country. You find it virtually nowhere else in Spain, except in Basque restaurants, and very little is exported around the world, with one major exception: the United States.  Its growing popularity, particularly in the summer months, is no mystery to us. Take a chance on the pronunciation (Chock’-a-lee), and come try some. Your friends at the cookout will thank you!

The Basa Lore winery