In conversation with Jorge Pallarés from Martin Codax winery

Bodegas Martín Códax was founded in 1985 and was named after the most known Galician troubadour whose medieval poems, the oldest of Galician-Portuguese language with the original music, are preserved. In the poems, the troubadour sings to love and to the sea of our coastline. A project that started with the dream and efforts of a group of winegrowers is now a reality and it is this reality which has let Bodegas Martín Códax become a symbol of Galician wines inside or outside of our borders/country.

Martin Codax is based in coastal Galicia, but how important is the sea influence on the wines you produce?

We are located in Rías Baixas, the birthplace of Albariño, and within Rías Baixas in the subarea of Val do Salnés. The characteristics from this unique region are what make Martín Códax different from other Albariños, a combination of natural factors (climate, soils, type of vineyards, and proximity to the sea).

This proximity to the sea means that the salinity permeates our soils, giving a higher iodine load to our grapes, resulting in a unique mineral and Atlantic character for our Albariño.

Albarino is now the ‘fashionable’ grape around the world, are you secretly pleased about this, or a bit annoyed the secret is out?

It is great that the Albariño grape is renowned around the world. We’ve always put an effort in not only highlighting the grape variety but its origin, Albariños from different areas can be quite different and that’s why we highlight we are an Albariño from Rías Baixas, the birthplace of Albariño, and a place whose unique characteristics make our Albariño stand out from others around the world.

A lot of Spain is very hot in summer, does your location protect you a little from the impact of climate change?

We call ourselves the green Spain, we are in the northwestern area of Spain and our climate is quite different from other areas in our country. Our temperatures are mild, due to our proximity to the sea, and we have high rainfall throughout the year. However, climate change is affecting us, in recent years our summers have been warmer, causing the harvest to be earlier than before.

What’s the best dish to pair with your Martin Codax Albarino and can you cook it at home?

Martín Códax is a great paring to Galician gastronomy. The food from the area is one of the best pairings for Martín Códax; fresh seafood (oysters, clams, scallops, mussels…) and different types of fish (cod, salmon, hake, tuna…). It is also a great pairing for Japanese, Thai or Mexican cuisine. It is a great wine to pair with a cheese board too.

Across your range there are lots of different styles of wine, but what are you experimenting with in terms of winemaking, that you can share?

We are researching into the great potential offered by the Albariño grape, creating singular quality wines that represent the versatility of this grape and the richness of Rías Baixas.

Wines with ageing on lees, such as Martín Códax Lías. Plot wines such as Martín Códax Finca Xieles, an Albariño from the oldest vines of Bodegas Martín Códax. Local wines such as Martín Códax Arousa, an Albariño born from a careful selection of grapes from small plots of land caressed by the sea at the mouth of the river Umia, in the Ría de Arousa. Wines with ageing such as Martín Códax Vindel, from a vineyard with a singular maturation in which the grapes reach a light pink tone that, after a late harvest and a careful winemaking process, give rise to this Albariño. Wines from late harvests in which the grapes contain at least 80% of noble botrytis, a phenomenon that occurs in exceptional years, such as Martín Códax Gallaecia. Also, wines in which we follow the most primitive and ancestral manual practices such as our Martín Códax OW orange wine that macerates with its skins.

Can you tell us a fun fact about Martin Codax that you’ve probably not told many people?

It is not a fun fact, but a story we hold dearly, and that we try to live up to in the present day with our commitment to Galician culture.

When the winery was born in 1985, many of those founding members were graduates in arts, literature, teachers… and they were looking for a name that would represent our tradition and culture. That is why they chose the name Martín Códax, the most famous Galician-Portuguese troubadour from the 13th century, whose poems known as cantigas are the oldest ones preserved to this day with both lyrics and musical notes. Our connection to the music, literature and Galician language is very dear to us, and we wanted to take it to the world with our most precious wine, our flagship Martín Códax, which for sure will bring you to Rías Baixas every time you have it.