Goyo Garcia ViaderoThe Underground Hero
Fourth-century Roman cellar, 1000-meter vineyards, and the antigua way of Ribera del Duero. Natural wines of striking sincerity inspired by Pierre Overnoy and the Jura.
From the family bodega to Pierre Overnoy's Jura and back—how Goyo became Ribera's underground hero.
Goyo Garcia Viadero was born into Ribera del Duero royalty—his family founded Bodegas Valduero in the 1980s, one of the twelve wineries that established the DO in 1982. He started working at the family bodega at age 14, continued through university where he studied agronomy, and by 21 had already bottled his first wine without sulfur. This was 1986, the same year Pierre Overnoy stopped using SO2 in the Jura—a coincidence that would later forge a deep friendship and philosophical alignment.
For years, Goyo was a "mercenary," running a 1000-hectare estate in La Mancha producing wine, olive oil, and cheese. But in 2003, he returned to his native Gumiel del Mercado with a mission: to buy three parcels of old vines and make wine the "antigua way"—the way his grandparents made it, before the region became industrialized. The French call these three vineyards "the three musketeers": Finca Valdeolmos, Finca El Peruco, and Finca Viñas de Arcilla. These centenarian vineyards, planted between 1905 and 1932, became the foundation of his project.
Today, Goyo and his wife Diana Semova Georgieva manage roughly 40 hectares of organically farmed vines in Ribera del Duero (vinifying about 10 hectares) and 2 hectares in Cantabria's Liébana Valley where his mother was born. They work with "the machines of the past"—horses and manual labor—avoiding tractors. His sister runs the family winery Bodegas Valduero; Goyo sources his old barrels (8+ years) from them. "I don't like oak, it's not from the grape, not from the soil," he says, preferring ultra-fine grain Bordeaux barriques for slow evolution.
"The most important thing is the quantity of tartaric acid"—co-fermenting reds and whites, hand-destemming, and the wisdom of the elders.
Goyo's philosophy centers on acidity and balance rather than extraction and power. "The most important thing in wine is the acidity," he insists. "Balance is important but so is acidity." He harvests early (usually at the start of October), not based on sugar levels but on tartaric acid content—aiming for 7-8 grams per liter. In Spain's warm climate, "what is essential is not the weather or whether the season was hot or cold because it is always warm. What is important is whether there was humidity or not in summer."
In the cellar, his approach is painstakingly traditional. All grapes are destemmed by hand (not mechanically crushed), gently pressed in an old-fashioned basket press, and fermented with wild yeasts at controlled temperatures (maceration 10-15 days at 6°C, fermentation no higher than 22°C). He co-ferments red and white grapes together—Tempranillo with Albillo, Mencía with Palomino—just as was done in the past. This is not innovation but tradition: "In the old days, vineyards were co-planted. That's how my grandparents made wine."
His ancient 4th-century lagar and cellar, carved into limestone bedrock beneath Gumiel del Mercado, is central to his winemaking. This vast, labyrinthine cave maintains cool temperatures year-round, creating ideal conditions for long, stable fermentations and extended barrel aging. The wines age here for 2-3 years in old barrels, then another 1-2 years in bottle before release. No sulfur or additives are ever used. "We only play with temperature and batonnage," he says of his minimal intervention approach.
Underground & Pure
Ribera del Duero & Liébana Valley—clay, limestone, sand and slate at 800-1000 meters.
High Altitude
Goyo's vineyards are among the highest in Ribera del Duero, ranging from 800 to over 1000 meters. Finca El Peruco sits at 1000m, making it one of the highest points in the appellation. These elevations provide crucial acidity and freshness in a region known for overripe, extracted wines. The sunbaked meseta combined with altitude creates tension between phenolic concentration and bright acidity.
Terroir
Three distinct soil types across the "three musketeers": Valdeolmos has stony, sandy limestone (vertical and aromatic); El Peruco has white sand and chalky clay-calcareous soils (ethereal and lifted); Viñas de Arcilla has red clay (fullest and most lush). In Cantabria's Liébana Valley, brown slate soils at 500-600m elevation produce the Beâtum wines.
Varieties
Old vineyards co-planted to Tempranillo (Tinto Fino), Albillo, Malvasia, and Graciano. Goyo co-ferments whatever is in the vineyard—typically 85-90% red with 10-15% white grapes. In Cantabria, he works with Mencía and Palomino. All vines are head-pruned (bush vines), low density (2000-3000 vines/ha), low yielding (25-30 hl/ha), and worked by hand or horse.
From the unoaked Joven to the single-vineyard trilogy and Cantabrian mountains—wines of striking sincerity.
Joven de Viñas Viejas
Goyo's only non-oaked red—100% Tinto Fino from dry-farmed vineyards at 880m elevation. Hand-harvested, destemmed, wild yeast fermentation in steel tank with 3 months of skin maceration (unusual for a "joven"), then raised entirely in tank. Dark, concentrated fruit (blackberry, morello cherry), juicy with fine tannins and lovely acidity. Bottled without fining, filtration, or SO2. A "house wine" of remarkable quality (~€22-28).
Finca Los Quemados Clarete
A "clarete" in the traditional style—100% Tinto Fino from 56-year-old vines at 960m on red sands with pebbles. Short maceration (5-6 days) in steel, then racked to old French oak barrels to complete fermentation and malolactic. Light-colored, fresh, with cherry fruit and floral notes. This short-maceration style was common in Ribera del Duero before the modern era of extraction. Bottled without SO2 (~€28-35).
Finca Valdeolmos
90% Tinto Fino, 10% Albillo co-fermented from stony, sandy limestone soils at 860m around Roa. Nicknamed "the elegant" for its verticality and aromatics. Fermented in small foudre, aged almost 2 years in old barrels (14+ years), then additional bottle aging. Dark fruits, licorice, gentle tannins, minerality. The limestone provides structure and salivation. One of the three "musketeer" vineyards (~€45-55).
Finca El Peruco
85% Tinto Fino, 15% Albillo from white sandy soils with chalky clay at 1000m elevation—one of the highest points in Ribera del Duero. "The fine"—ethereal, lifted, mineral. Slightly reduced initially (barbecued meat notes), opening to milky chocolate, clove, and blueberries. Vertical wine with refreshing acids and an irony finish from the sand. More ethereal than Arcilla or Valdeolmos (~€45-55).
Finca Viñas de Arcilla
100% Tinto Fino from very old vines where clay predominates at 800m. "The serious"—fullest, most lush, and most structured of the three. Balsamic notes (pine, encina), evident tannin, but also more fruit. Aged similarly to the others (2+ years in old barrels). The clay gives this wine power and depth, making it the most "traditional" Ribera del Duero in structure while remaining pure and additive-free (~€45-55).
Reserva Especial
Goyo's selection of his two favorite barrels each vintage—typically one barrel each from two of the three fincas (e.g., Valdeolmos and Arcilla in 2011; Valdeolmos only in 2016). After individual aging, the wines are blended and receive an additional 1-2 years in bottle before release. The pinnacle of his Ribera del Duero work, showing the complexity that comes with extended aging and blending. Extremely limited (~€55-70).
García Georgieva Blanco
Named after Goyo and his wife Diana. Centenarian vines of Albillo & Malvasia, hand-harvested, destemmed, pressed in old-fashioned basket press. Fermented with wild yeasts in steel vat with ~25 days skin contact, then raised on fine lees. Bottled in early spring without fining, filtration, or SO2. Slightly orange in color, with fresh acidity, orchard fruit, and herbal complexity (~€28-35).
García Georgieva Malvasia
100% Malvasia from centenarian vines, treated similarly to the Blanco but with 14 days skin contact and full malolactic fermentation. Fermented and raised in steel vat on fine lees. More aromatic than the Albillo blend, with distinct Malvasia character—floral, honeyed, with texture from the skin contact. Bottled without additions (~€28-35).
Beâtum Tinto
From the Liébana Valley in Cantabria where Goyo's mother was born—80% Mencía, 20% Palomino (co-planted as was traditional). Vines are 80+ years old on broken slate soils at 500-600m elevation in the Picos de Europa mountains. Co-fermented, raised 12 months in French oak barrels without sulfur. Dark, super expressive, floral (violets), licorice, luscious mouthfeel. A completely different expression from the Duero wines (~€30-38).
Beâtum Blanco
100% old bush vine Palomino on brown slate soils at 500-600m around Potes, Picos de Europa. Fermented on skins in stainless steel without added yeast, sulfur, or any exogenous products. Skin contact provides texture and tannin, while the slate gives minerality. Mature apples, orange peel, full in the mouth. A mountain wine from Spain's green north, showing Palomino's versatility beyond sherry (~€28-35).
Finca Guijarrales (Cascorrales)
Formerly called Cascorrales—100% Graciano (a rarity in Ribera del Duero) from river stones and red sand at high elevation, facing north-northwest. Hand-destemmed, wild yeast fermentation in steel vat for 10-15 days with 3 months skin maceration, raised 12 months in old finely-grained Bordeaux barriques. Dark, very fruity, light-bodied but long. Shows Goyo's willingness to work with "illegal" varieties (~€40-50).
Tempranillo a Mano
An experimental cuvée where Goyo takes only the best grapes from every bunch by hand—so it takes 3 parcels to fill one large barrel. The result is a big, bold, dark wine with some coffee notes. Represents the extreme selection and concentration possible from old vines. Very limited production, cellar door only or special allocations (~€50-60).
The Devotion of Ribera del Duero
Goyo Garcia Viadero represents the first category of natural wine: serious wines of high quality that happen to be made without additives. In a region dominated by 300+ bodegas producing extracted, oak-heavy, chemically-manipulated wines, Goyo has charted a course back to the past. His wines—whether the single-vineyard "three musketeers" or the Cantabrian Beâtum wines—demonstrate that Ribera del Duero can produce wines of elegance, acidity, and terroir transparency.
His legacy extends beyond the bottle. By maintaining the ancient 4th-century Roman cellar, by hand-destemming grapes, by co-fermenting reds and whites as his grandparents did, by working with horses and rejecting tractors, Goyo keeps alive a way of life that was disappearing. The French call him an "underground hero"; his wines are indeed made underground, in the limestone caves beneath Gumiel del Mercado, where temperature and time work slowly. As he says, "I don't like oak, it's not from the grape, not from the soil." What comes through instead is the soil itself—chalk, sand, clay, slate—and the wisdom of centenarian vines that have seen Ribera del Duero transform from forgotten backwater to wine capital, and back again to authenticity through his hands.
- 4th century Roman lagar and cellar
- Hand-destemming (no mechanical crushing)
- Co-fermentation of red and white grapes
- 1000m elevation (highest in appellation)
- 8+ year old barrels (ultra-fine grain)
- Zero sulfur or additives
- 2-3 years barrel aging + 1-2 years bottle
- 40-100+ year old vines
- Horse and manual labor (no tractors)
- Cross-regional project (Cantabria/Liébana)
- Friendship with Pierre Overnoy (Jura)
- Family connection to Bodegas Valduero