Albariño Wine Route

Driving and tasting your way through the heart of Galicia's white-wine country

The Ruta do Viño Rías Baixas threads together more than 50 wineries open to the public across the five sub-zones of the appellation. The densest cluster is in Val do Salnés around Cambados, where you can comfortably visit three or four bodegas in a day on foot or by bicycle. Pazo Baión, Granbazán, and Bodegas Martín Códax are among the easiest to visit — most ask for an appointment but some take walk-ins.

The wine itself is the reason to come: pale gold, intensely aromatic, naturally low in alcohol, and the perfect companion to the seafood served at every village restaurant. Visit during the September harvest if you can — the whole region smells of fermenting grapes for two weeks.

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A story
Albariño was nearly lost in the 1970s — bulk production of cheap mass-market Spanish wine had crowded out the small Galician growers, and only a handful of families bothered to keep the old vines going. The creation of the DO Rías Baixas in 1988 saved it, and within a decade Albariño was on wine lists from London to San Francisco.

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