Hiruzta Bodega Zuri Txakoli 2021

Hiruzta Bodega is known for producing award-winning Txakoli wines in the small town of Hondarribia in the Spanish Basque region. The name of the winery itself encompasses the very heart of the project: HIRUren UZTA, A THREE-PERSON HARVEST. It is the brainchild of a father and his two sons, Asensio, Txarli and Angel Rekalde. In 2007 the Denomination of Origin Getariako Txakolina opened up the possibility of planting and producing txakoli in Gipuzkoa, and this was when the family planted vines in HIRUZTA, kicking off the project.

In 2012, the winery was opened, with the first 2011 vintage. Specialized importers from more than 20 countries now order from the Hiruzta winery, which has become a reference in wine tourism in the Basque Country. The family's passion and love of the world of wine was what inspired them to create their own txakoli wineries in one of the most beautiful locations in the Basque Country: Hondarribia. 

Txakoli wines are refreshingly zesty and light bodied, with a gentle sparkling effect, or as the French say, pétillance. In French “pétiller” means to sparkle, and the word is used for eyes, wit, and wine, just as in English. Generally when we refer to pétillance in wine (pronounced PE-TEE-YONCE) it means just a faint sensation of fizz on the tongue. Txakoli wines have aromas of citrus and white fruits, together with herbal notes, are followed by flavors of lemon, lime, apple, pear and sometimes pineapple, which combine with a mineral or saline edge leading to a pleasantly zesty finish. The main white variety used to make Txakoli is Hondarrabi Zuri, Zuri in Basque means white, and which the importer of this bottling is using as the nickname of the wine. Hondarrabi Zuri is a productive variety, with small and compact bunches, resistant to humidity and well adapted to this area.

What food pairs well with Txakoli? The product of a coastal setting, it is only fitting that Txakoli pairs perfectly with seafood dishes, particularly oysters on the half shell, prawns and crab, while traditional Basque fare like tuna in oil, salted anchovies and various types of Pintxos are deliciously accented by the acidic, effervescent character of this white wine. 

Why is Txakoli poured from high up in the air? Spanish bartenders and waiters pour like this to agitate the wine and wake it up. Like a horse with pent-up energy, txakoli wants to buck and jump and run, and it displays its most power and beauty when it has the space to do so!