Loreak Mendian presents a collaboration with Sancho Rodriguez, farmer and creator of Manin, wines from the Navarrese-Rioja border.

My name is Sancho Rodríguez. 22 years ago I was in charge of marketing at Loreak Mendian. I will always be grateful to Victor, Xabi and Juan for that opportunity. We lived at a vibrant time in our street and beach culture. I'd like to think that we were part of an artistic, musical and surf scene that marked our generation. Respect for this culture, between the street and uptown, was key to our work, and a fundamental part of my apprenticeship.

In 2018, we started a new stage. Together with my partner Angela, we take care of vineyards and make wine on her land in Navarra, around El Busto, Tierra Estella. We like to think that we are part of an agricultural revolution, a revolution that makes visible the work of the people who feed us.

We were fortunate to be welcomed with curiosity, respect, and to have received fundamental support and help from family, neighbours, friends, and professional farmers. The Munarriz family, Javier Ripa, Alvaro Fernández de Arcaya, Mili, and their families have been key to making us feel supported. We are concerned about the discouragement they have felt in recent campaigns. The instability of the markets where they sell their produce, and the climate crisis, affect their economy and their morale. We need to take better care of the people who produce our food.

We have taken over from winegrowers who have entrusted us with the care of very old vines, some of which are over 100 years old. Unfortunately, the system has left this area behind, and we are working on the vestiges of a wine-growing civilisation that is now almost extinct.

In 2024 I will be the last winegrower in Armañanzas. My partner Jesús "Despierta" is retiring. I definitely enjoyed his nickname, coined by his neighbours for being the early risers of the village.

Because of the primitive nature of our work, we believe it is at the forefront of caring for the land and the landscape. Alone, I work 3.5 ha. of very old vines, between 80 and more than 100 years old, located in 8 villages, in 4 different valleys. It goes without saying that we work organically, without herbicides or systemic products, some copper and sulphur.

Like Ekain and Itxi, who look after their flock of "xaxi ardis". Some say they have gone a bit kamikaze. As soon as they left the shepherd school in Aranzazu, they set up their own flock. They're living their dream, with the challenges that accompany daring people who want to challenge the immobility and industrial inertia of the hegemonic food world. We need this young couple, and all people who believe in agroecology, to do well. We need to be aware of how and by whom our food is produced.

We have become a huge minority that is helping to regenerate soil through a new way of producing and consuming. Farmers have sculpted our landscape for thousands of years, and the urban eye is often unaware that when they speak of "nature", they are talking about an agricultural landscape that needs farmers to care for it.  Livestock keepers and farmers are necessary for a living landscape, resilient to fires and droughts.

We refuse to believe that in the future people will no longer cook, that everything will be 5th range, hydroponic indoor gardens, food distributed in plastic trays, cut vegetables and fruit, prepared under film. Lidia Pascal, a great friend for more than 30 years, a partner in Loreak Mendian, is part of the resistance. Olako Abastos, a shop selling food produced by small producers, is now open. Markets, consumer cooperatives, organic shops, growing your own garden, direct sales, education in schools, food sovereignty, people vs. corporations.

Drought is a reality of our times, it was a reality of our past in places like this, and it will be a reality of our future. The last few years have been very difficult in our country, we live in a semi-arid climate. The change is more pronounced if you live in two realities like us, in 90 minutes we go from our Atlantic climate to a dry Mediterranean climate. All our vineyards are strictly unirrigated, we do not irrigate. This year the water is being generous, the countryside is beautiful, full of life and vegetation.

We have come across a place with a lot of fallow land... but we really think it is land with great potential to make world-class, dry wines. We want to pick up where our ancestors left off, vindicating previous generations, building pride in our land, motivating others to follow this path, and in this way rebuild the Mediterranean mosaic of this place. May children run around these squares again, and may we know who grows and where the food we enjoy, which gives us life and makes us healthy every day, comes from... the future is not apocalyptic if your purpose is to contribute positively to your family, to your town, to your community. 

Warning! Wine is an age-old cultural asset... it has nourished us, it has been a currency of exchange, it has helped sculpt many incredible landscapes, it has given life to many regions. It is passion, encounters, laughter and enjoyment around a table.  But it is also alcohol, and as such, we recommend moderate, cultural use. And above all, drink wine made by people, organic, artisanal and with personality. People versus corporations!

Eskerrik asko Sancho!

Photography by Iker Basterretxea
Story by Sancho Rodriguez

Comprar colección

Lastest posts