The pioneering duo of Pablo Eguzkiza and Telmo Rodríguez started working in the Val do Bibei in 2002. Recognizing the potential to make world-class wines in this historic valley, they began a project restoring vineyards that would take more than a decade to come to fruition.

Ladeiras do Xil is named for the hillsides along the Sil River (literally “slopes of the Sil”), which, along with the Miño River, is the lifeblood of the Ourense province, including the Valdeorras and Ribeira Sacra wine regions. Ladeiras do Xil produces a highly-coveted collection of extremely low-production, single-vineyard grand cru red wines: Valbuxán, As Caborcas, Falcoeira, and O Diviso, along with two white wines: Branco de Santa Cruz and Falcoeira Branco. All are field blends of indigenous grape varietals reflecting the purity and transcendence of one of the most exceptional terroirs in Europe. Ladeiras do Xil is a life’s project to recover and vindicate the exceptional sites along the Sil and Bibei rivers, uncovering their grand cru potential. 

Lg. Valbuxán (Lugar de Valbuxán, “the place of Valbuxán”) is an ancient pazo or “house of labor” that are estates in Galicia located mainly in the mountains, where extensive pastures provided good places to raise livestock. These estates also used to have a cellar where grapes from the surrounding communities were pressed and vinified into wine. 

In the late 2010s, Pablo and Telmo came across the derelict Pazo Lg. Valbuxán, a prominent historic building made from the local granite, located in O Bolo county in Valdeorras. In 2019, after completely renovating it, including its original cellar where records show wine has been made at least as far back as 300 years ago, Lg. Valbuxán became the winery in Valdeorras where all of the Ladeiras do Xil wines are now vinified.

Recuperating the old pazo helped them dream about the wines they would make there in the historic cellar. It inspired them to revive its history of making wine with grapes from the village and surrounding communities. Lg. Valbuxán Tinto Lexítimo is the culmination of this effort. 

Valbuxán is an authentic premier cru village wine of various native varieties and different ages, all growing at different altitudes and exposures in the surrounding O Bolo county, particularly in the communities of As Ermitas, Santa Cruz, and Valbuxán. Among the native grape varieties used to make Valbuxán are mencía, merenzao, sousón, brancellao, and garnacha tintorera. Viticulture is organic, the grapes are hand-harvested, and wines are made with low intervention. Valbuxán is a limited-production wine.

Vinification – Following a manual harvest in small crates, fermentation begins spontaneously with native yeasts in large used French foudres. The wine is aged for 12 months in used 1,500L and 225L French barrels before being bottled unfiltered.

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