This post is also available in: Español (Spanish)
Although most of Bodegas Arzuaga’s wines are red, we do also produce whites and rosés at our winery that definitely bear the stamp of Arzuaga both in their production as well as in their final nuances. This is the case of the wine we’d like to present to you in this post. A white, varietal Chardonnay that, as Ignacio Arzuaga remarks, ‘is bound to get you talking’. Our Fan D. Oro.
The first example of this stamp we were talking about can be found in the name of the wine itself. As many of you may not have known, the first part of this wine’s name corresponds to the initials of Familia Arzuaga Navarro: F.A.N. The ‘D. Oro’, on the other hand, comes from its golden colour, reminiscent of this precious metal called ‘oro’ in Spanish.
To make this wine, we only use Chardonnay white grapes from our La Planta estate, where this variety occupies 4.5 hectares. ‘I think this wine is one of the most unique Chardonnays there is in Spain,’ says Arzuaga’s sales manager, Javier Bañales. It’s a variety that, as Bañales points out, ‘is also very much influenced by the typical features of the climate where it’s planted: 900 metres above sea level, the temperature difference between day and night, the subsoil…’
The importance of the Chardonnay variety is key when it comes to understanding Fan D. Oro. ‘The grape resurfaces as the main actor, which I think is that most important thing about this wine,’ says Arzuaga. ‘You can tell it’s a Chardonnay straight away’.
When moving on to the tasting of this wine, Bañales doesn’t hesitate to point out that ‘it’s a poem’ on the nose, ‘with a base of white flowers, fruit and citrus. Fine and very elegant with the oak in the background, well blended and integrated,’ he notes.
On the palate, Arzuaga picks out ‘that unctuousness that’s so typical of Chardonnay, which gives it silkiness and structure’. When it comes to pairing Fan D. Oro, the managing director of Bodegas Arzuaga points out that it’s precisely this unctuousness that’s going to help it go perfectly even with white meat. ‘Fish in powerful sauces, rice dishes, pasta… the range of what we can enjoy this wine with is fairly broad,’ says Arzuaga.
Ultimately, Fan D. Oro is an interesting, different, vibrant, fresh, versatile wine that’s worth enjoying. Cheers!