Fazenda Agricola Augalevada
There are few viticultural regions as dramatic, wild, and diverse as Ribeira Sacra. Being a boundary between the cool, rainy Atlantic coast and Spain's hot, dry interior, Ribeira Sacra enjoys the best and the worst of the two domains. The main threats to viticulture are the storms that blow in from the Atlantic, bringing plenty of rain and wind; and morning fogs. A paradise for fungus. And yet people grow vines and make wines here. Some locals even practice organic and biodynamic farming. And that's truly heroic.
Among them is Iago Garrido. Due to constant rain and humidity, mildew growth becomes almost uncontrollable in the region. As a result, vineyards require more frequent copper and sulfur treatments compared to other drier wine regions. The majority of the vineyards where Iago works are inaccessible by machines, therefore, most of the work is done by hand. This inaccessibility also motivates growers to use chemicals as manual labor is too expensive if the wines cannot be sold for a price to offset the extra cost. Despite these challenges, Iago sticks to organic farming with biodynamic practices.
In 2014, Iago released his first wine called Ollos de Roque (Eyes of Roque). He produced two versions of it; a commercial variant and an experimental one called Número Dous (Number Two in Galician), which he kept for private use. The former was aged in oak barrels, while the latter was vinified in buried amphorae and aged under the influence of flor. Initially, Iago thought that using amphorae was a mistake, so he decided to sell the oak version. However, his friends started to tell him how much they liked Número Dous, and Iago also found the same pleasure in this wine.
Número Dous provided Iago with a clear path, and what was a mere accident to avoid in the future became the central focus of the entire range. Nowadays, all his wines have varying levels of flor influence (even red wines).
The Mercenario range of wines is made from fruit that has been purchased or sourced from vineyards that are farmed by Iago, but not owned by him. Iago follows organic or biodynamic practices in the vineyards he works with, while some vineyards are a mix of organic and conventional depending on the grower. Only grapes from exceptional sites are accepted from conventional growers, and they make up a very small proportion of the overall fruit. Additionally, Iago is constantly encouraging the growers he works with to switch to organic farming methods.
