Rodrigo Méndez of Bodegas Forjas del Salnés is the fifth generation of a legendary Galician family known for crafting quality wines for over three centuries. Today, Rodri is considered one of the greatest and most prolific Albariño producers in the world, making at least 18 different bottlings at his small winery established in the cradle of the Albariño grape itself: the Val do Salnés. This historic area is the most coastal subzone in the Rías Baixas winegrowing region, an appellation that was established by Rodri’s late grandfather in 1988.

Like many in the “New Spain” winegrowing movement, Rodri studies and experiments with the methods his ancestors used prior to industrialization. Employing skin contact, foot-treading, extended lees contact with no batonnage, and working with different formats and sizes of aging vessels, are all part of the toolkit he uses to show off many spectacular vineyard sites. He has discovered that regardless of where you travel in Salnés, the climate is fairly consistent, meaning that the key difference here lies in the soil. Keeping this in mind, his practice requires strategically isolating vineyards by soil type and then vinifying them separately.

Regardless of the site, Rodri’s basic philosophies in the vineyard reflect his commitment to simplicity: he takes an organic and low-intervention farming approach that is informed by common sense, with no treatments (except copper and sulfur) used in the vineyards unless there is a serious risk of a vine dying without an intervention. His eponymous label, Rodrigo Méndez, is comprised exclusively of wines made from vineyards in his home village of Meaño.