SantYuste – Esmeralda García

Verdejo is a typically Spanish white grape variety, grown mostly in the DO Rueda in the province of Segovia, in Castilla y León. Pioneering figures of Spain's younger generation, such as Ismael Gozalo (Microbio wines) and Esmeralda García (SantYuste), have produced remarkably expressive and natural wines from an exceptional heritage of very old pre-phylloxera vines.

 After training with several leading estates, in 2010 Esmeralda García returned to Santiuste de San Juan Bautista, her native village in the south-east of Rueda, where she rediscovered some old family vines, plots of pre-phylloxera Verdejo aged from 140 to over 200 years on a sandy limestone plateau at 800/850m. Her commitment to living, natural wines, free from any synthetic chemicals, is total, and is reflected in a range of generic (Vino de Pueblo) or parcel-based cuvées (Vayuste, El Carrascal, Las Miñañas, among others) vinified in stainless steel vats and/or amphorae. These whites are remarkable for their frankness, complexity and authenticity, combining intense fruit and minerality.