Alvar de Dios Vaguera, El Maderal

Doña Blanc

Castilla y Leon, Spain

Alvar de Dios Hernandez was born and raised in the village of El Pego near the southern boundary of DO Toro. His family had tended vineyards in the village for generations, but Alvar didn’t stay in Toro to learn his trade; instead, he fell in with a pair of vinous rebels working in the Sierra de Gredos – Fernando Garcia and Dani Landi. While working as the cellar master for Fernando at Bodega Marañones, he began acquiring vineyards of his own in and around his native DO, splitting his time between the Gredos and Toro.

Vagüera is a single 0.5 ha parcel of mixed vines located at 900–950 meters above sea level just outside the border of Toro in the village of El Maderal. Alvar purchased this site in 2009 when it was somewhat run-down, as it had not been worked since 2006. Vagüera (the cuvée) is 100% Doña Blanca harvested by hand, gently pressed, and fermented by indigenous yeasts in neutral 225L & 700L French oak barrels.