Gorka Izagirre

26.11.21

Gala Sofranac

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On a mission to revitalise the Basque Country and its culture, in 2005, the Azurmendi family – Eneko and his uncle Gorka – created a bold project for Basque gastronomy and wine growing, quickly becoming role models in both areas. From the outset, the aim of this winegrower was to boost the cultivation of indigenous grape varieties to produce unique wines that mirrored the great potential of this magnificent viticultural area. Gorka Izagirre’s wines come from their own 42-hectare estate of vineyards that lie on steep slopes that sometimes reach more than 30% of inclination, spread across 14 different vineyards.

Gorka Izagirre, started the winemaking business 16 years ago in the Basque country, 15 minutes away from Bilbao and in a small town called Larrabetzu where he grew up. The vineyard represents about 15% of all wine production from this region, but only accounts for a very small amount of production across the whole of Spain. Producing only 300,000 bottles a year. Today the vineyard and winery is managed by Son, Bertol, Who is passionate about creating complex, gastronomic wines that represent the soul of the area

Only the Hondarrabi Zuri, Hondarrabi Zerratia and Hondarrabi Beltza grape varieties are planted, which grow in very small bunches and weigh, on average, only 80 to 100 gr. These types of grapes are scarce and very concentrated. The family is the largest producer and owns the largest plantation of Hondarrabi Zerratia and Beltza in the world with 22ha. The vineyard produces only 6 wines so that they can focus on crafting quality wines over quantity.