Verdejo is a typically Spanish white grape variety, whose favourite land is the DO Rueda area in the province of Segovia, in Castilla y León. Ismael Gozalo, one of Spain's leading figures of the younger generation, is rightly considered "the magician of verdejo", as he has been working on the vineyards around Nieva in the south-east of this appellation and has been in his family for several generations!
It was in 1998 that Ismael Gozalo, after various experiences, initiated his personal project, called Microbio wines, from the family plots. His approach is based on a high-altitude vineyard mainly composed of the local white grape variety, the verdejo, in old, free-standing pre-phylloxera vines - i.e. not grafted - as well as regional grape varieties in massal selection, with a wide variety of vinifications and maturations, notably in tinajas (earthenware amphorae) or in barrels. The cultivation is strictly free of inputs, organic, and the vinification is carried out in a totally natural way. His wines - under the name of Microbio wines or under his own name - show a great personal style: rich, generous wines with a strong mineral imprint.
