INSIDER'S PICK: 2015 PAZO CASTRELLO ALBARINO RIAS BAIXAS(Wine Enthusiast 90+points) $15.99

The greens of Spring are getting an extra pop of intensity from the recent and highly needed rains. And while the rains in Spain MAY fall mainly on the plains, the Gallician and Basque regions to the North/Northwest are rightfully called 'Green Spain', so we take our wine journey there today. The hilly terrain makes for a lot of scattered pockets of vineyards and a historically isolated wine industry, but the Rias Baixas region just above Portugal has been leading the renaissance. The Albarino grape is dominant here, and can be made in a surprisingly diverse number of styles ranging from fragrant and flowery like a drier style Viognier, or racy and vibrant with coastal or mineral flavors. The best examples like this one easily call to mind the lush vegitation, cooling breezes and hilly green vistas of the region. 

From the first pour this Albarino does a great job of walking the line between the flowery and racy styles, showing an initial white fruit and flowers aroma that develops a bit of lime zest and salinity with a few swirls of the glass. The texture on the palate is juicy and shows lots of white grape and pear fruit at first, but the longer is sits in your mouth the more the minerality shows through, finishing with loads of mouthwatering acidity. A great pairing with lightly seasoned seafood.

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