Sauvignon blanc

This song closes the third movement of LUX, the fourth album by Rosalía, and in the physical edition it occupies the thirteenth track, between Focu ‘ranni and Jeanne. It sounds like a farewell, but not of people: of all that is material. The lyrics are inspired by Saint Teresa of Ávila, that 16th-century Spanish nun who wrote about her union with the divine while the Church persecuted her. There are no adornments or distant metaphors here; the text goes straight to letting go of what is left behind, as if each word were an object dropped to the ground.

It was recorded with Noah Goldstein and Rosalía leading the production, while Daniel Lopez handled the arrangements. At the mixing desk were Ramiro Fernandez‐Seoane, Francesco di Giovanni and Manny Marroquin, and the result clocks in at just over two and a half minutes. In 2018, Rosalía had already amassed more Latin Grammy awards than any other Spanish artist in a single year, but this track doesn’t sound like a celebration: it sounds like stripping away, like silence after letting go of what no longer serves.