Table of contents for October - December 2019 in Selectus Wines

Within the wine industry, awareness of female winemakers has been growing in recent years. It is not that women had not previously been working in the industry, but that, for some time now, they have become much more visible. No doubt, our society did not, in the past, give women the visibility they deserved. Female oenologists, journalists, Masters of Wine, sales reps, etc., all of them play an important role in the wine world. That is why women take centre stage in this issue of Selectus Wines. We interviewed Belén Sanz, the female winemaker at the Dehesa de los Canónigos winery, who tells us how she came to winemaking, and talks openly about the difficulty of balancing work with personal life, particularly at a busy time like the 2019 harvest,…

XAVIER AYALA @DiariSommelier @diarisommelier.cat Called Tempranillo in La Rioja, this grape variety goes by the name of Cencibel in La Mancha, Ull de Llebre in Catalonia, Tinta de Toro in Toro, Tinto Fino or Tinta Fina in Ribera del Duero, and even Tinta Roriz or Aragonés in Portugal. Spread across the entire Iberian peninsula, the varietal is known generically as Tempranillo (derived from temprano in Spanish, meaning "early") because of its capacity to ripen earlier than other red grapes. It is said that the Romans introduced grapevine cultivation to the peninsula in 210 BC. Wine was drunk in many parts of the world because it could be easily preserved and last over the long journeys at sea. Yet, like much of the Old World, the area was hit by phylloxera…

LA MASIA CHARDONNAY 2017 · MARIMAR ESTATE Sonoma Valley / Sebastopol, California - USA / www.marimarestate.com / P.V.P.: 33,70€ / 100% Chardonnay / Familia Torres Marimar Torres named the Chardonnay vineyard in the Russian River Valley, “Don Miguel” after her father. And the winery, built in 1992, is in the style of a classic Catalan farmhouse. This is how, from the other side of the ocean, elements that are part of Marimar Torres’ roots are found in her wines. To enable it to faithfully reflect the vineyard’s terroir and retain its potential for cellar-ageing, the wine is crafted in specially selected French oak barrels throughout the process, from alcoholic and malolactic fermentation through to ageing. This wine has a classic and very Burgundian profile, but still shows some of the winery’s…

The name Dehesa de los Canónigos refers to the Cathedral of Valladolid’s Council of Canons, made up of 22 canon monks, which was the winery’s first owner. This is how, in keeping with the references to the winery’s ecclesiastical origins, the Solideo wine, which means “only before God” came to be created in 2014. It is only produced in the great vintages. Solideo is the winery’s Reserva wine introduced to mark its 25th anniversary. The 2014 vintage is the fifth Solideo vintage. It has a Tinto Fino base complemented by 12% Cabernet Sauvignon and 3% Albillo, grown in their own vineyards, planted over 80 years ago. In March 2017, it completed 20 months’ ageing in American oak barrels, followed by 4 months resting in French oak. This use of different…

Finca Los Hoyales is the Cruz de Alba winery’s most recent project. It is produced according to biodynamic agriculture principles, i.e. agriculture based on the movements of the stars and their relationship with the Earth, and without the use of any phytosanitary products since 2006, allowing the vines to grow in a balanced and healthy manner. One of the maxims of its maker, Sergio Ávila, is love and respect for nature. To treat a vineyard there is nothing better than knowledge. Understanding and respect are essential if you want the vines to give their best. The terroir is as important as the grape variety and climate, and in each of his vineyards, Sergio seeks the perfect combination of all three elements. Finca Los Hoyales is a micro-plot of under 2…

In the late 17th century, the Benedictine monk Dom Perignon would probably never have dreamed that the production method he devised at the Hautvillers Abbey in the Marne Valley of the Champagne region would still be creating such a buzz four centuries later. Today, we are witnessing a revolution in the heart of high-quality Catalonian sparkling wines. An important group of traditional cava-makers, previously producing under the umbrella of the Cava Designation of Origin, embarked down a new path, under the Corpinnat collective brand, one year ago. The project was born in the heart of Penedés, a region with historical and social values that needs to assert itself as a territory and promote the excellence of its wines. These wines are produced according to very strict regulations: harvesting by hand,…

WOMEN OF WINE In 2009, Anne Cannan, winemaker and owner of Clos Figueras, decided to hold an event in her winery during the Priorat wine fair to give more prominence and visibility to women producing wine in the Priorat. Such was the success of the initiative that the event has been repeated every other year under the name of “El Tast amb Dones” (the tasting with women). In 2016, and in parallel to Alimentaria, the first “WOMEN OF WINE” showroom was held in Barcelona, with the presence of women from all over Spain, which was also very successful and had a great impact within the wine world. Selectus Wines: What is Women of Wine? Anne Cannan: It‘s a group of women winegrowers, winemakers, etc., professionals who come together to have…

Ossian was the first winery that showed that you could and should work organically with the Verdejo varietal in Rueda, although today it is outside the designation of origin. Its vocation for innovation made Ossian a pioneer winery, starting initiatives to learn more about the variety and coming up with new ways of exploring its essence, its potential and its versatility. This took them down other paths, outside the established norms. Ossian was created by Javier Zaccagnini and oenologist Ismael Gonzalo in 2005. And they already had a head start, because they had some exceptional vineyards with some very old, ungrafted pre-phylloxera vines. These are planted in the highest area, at 900 metres altitude, which causes important thermal oscillations and slow, yet even, ripening. They have been certified as organically…

PORRERA VI DE VILA 2016 · CELLER VALL LLACH D.O.Q. Priorat / Porrera, Tarragona - Spain / www.vallllach.com / P.V.P.: 46,00€ / 78% Cariñena 22% Garnacha This is a little gem from the Priorat. It’s one of those wines that once you’ve tasted it, you just can’t get it out of your head. Cariñena with some Garnacha, the blend “par excellence” of the Priorat but, above all, the Cariñena, as the iconic grape of the village of Porrera. Vi de Vila (Village Wine) is a classification recently introduced by the Priorat's D.O. to more closely identify and associate its wines with their territory and to transmit the typical character of the village’s patchwork of terroirs in each of its bottles. So, when you ask for a Vi de Vila you are…

This is a land with a deep tradition that looks to the future while keeping the past alive. And in this tradition, Sherry plays an essential role. These wines have over 3,000 years of history to their name and are Spain’s most exported wines. This famous fortified wine travelled down the Guadalete River in barrels to make itself known beyond our borders. It was both famous and important, especially when people had to make long journeys to reach their final destination, as was the case with the Spanish Crown’s diplomatic missions to the former colonies in the West Indies and South America. This medium Oloroso is obtained from a dry Oloroso derived from oxidative ageing that endows it with an intense, full-bodied character, blended and sweetened with 20% Pedro Ximénez.…

SANTI JIMÉNEZ Director @selectuswines Selectus Wines: When did you decide you wanted to work in the wine world and carry on the family business? Belén Sanz: I started with my “dear Dehesa” when I was really little. I remember my grandfather Arturo, with his hat, telling me of his love of the land, my father Luis, with his phrase that many people know, “grapes before vats,” and my mother Mari Luz who fought so hard to pass on to us a desire for continuity for a place that she loves so much. In a unique “lagar”, a basin that used to receive the fruit of a year’s work after the harvest... I don't remember the date, but I still remember my desire to feel the grapes under my feet, the…

JOAN ARBOIX ROURA Mallorca, 1981 @Joanet112 Professional sommelier since 2006, he began his career as a sommelier at the Moo restaurant (1* Michelin) in Barcelona. He has also worked for the Ritz Carlton in Spain and Chile as a sommelier and maître d’. He currently works at the Andreu Genestra (1* Michelin) restaurant in Mallorca. Balearic Islands Sommelier Champion 2008. Sumiller profesional desde el año 2006. Trabajó como sumiller en el restaurante MOO de Barcelona (1*Michelin). Ha trabajado para Ritz Carlton en España y Chile como Sumiller y Jefe de Sala. Actualmente en el restaurante Andreu Genestra (1*Michelin) en Mallorca. Campeón de Sommeliers de les Illes Balears en 2008. ANNA VICENS Girona, 1973 @annavicens Professional sommelier since 1997, she is currently President of the Catalan Association of Sommeliers, a member…

CLUNIA MALBEC 2016 · BODEGAS CLUNIA Vinos de la Tierra de Castilla y León / Coruña del Conde, Burgos - Spain / www.bodegasclunia.com / P.V.P.: 26,00€ / 100% Malbec This wine, produced in Burgos from a grape varietal that is more often vinified in Argentina’s Mendoza region, is influenced by the altitude of its vineyards. After three successive sortings of the grapes and 15 months’ ageing in French oak barrels, the result is a powerful wine with excellent cellar-ageing potential. It reveals a ripe cherry red hue with a purplish rim. On the nose, it presents very spicy and balsamic notes with hints of liquorice and black pepper. The aromatic complexity is found again on the palate with aromas of tangy jams, ripe plums, wild black fruit and toffee over some…

Mirto was born in 1999 to demonstrate that a different type of wine, fresher, more elegant and with less prominence of oak, can be produced in the Rioja. The man who led this change, rejecting classicism to produce wines of a more modern style, was the winery’s winemaker and current general manager, Rodolfo Bastida. This year marks twenty years since the start of that small revolution. Mirto comes from eight Tempranillo vineyards all in excellent locations between the Rioja Alta and the Rioja Alavesa. The objective of this “coupage” of grapes is not to obtain the expression of any one particular terroir, but to make a great wine that is a reflection of a great vintage. Fermented in small French oak barrels. After the malolactic fermentation, the wine was transferred…

MARÍA DE CAL VALL · CELLER VALL LLACH D.O.Q. Priorat / Porrera, Tarragona - Spain / www.vallllach.com / P.V.P.:115,00€ / 100% Garnacha negra From a very select production which yielded just over three hundred 20cl bottles, this dry rancio wine is made from Garnacha Tinta. On entry to the palate, it packs more of a punch than you might expect. This rancio wine has undergone oxydative ageing, maturing in a solera system made up of very old chestnut and acacia barrels dating from 1927 and 1946. Thanks to the successive generations at the Cal Vall manor house, who have watched over the family’s barrels of rancio wine over the years, this wine is a treasure. It is intended as a tribute to María Grande or María de Cal Vall, the mother…

ARS COLLECTA BLANC DE BLANCS 2015 · CODORNIU D.O. Cava / Sant Sadurní d´Anoia - Barcelona - Spain / www.raventoscodorniu.com / P.V.P.: 17,00€ / 85% Chardonnay, 15% Xarel·lo, Parellada Ars Collecta is a collection of three prestigious cavas created by Codorniu to complement the collection of fine cavas that had begun with Jaume de Codorniu, the three “Paraje Cualificado” cavas and the 456, the most exclusive cava from this historic winery. Ars Collecta Blanc de Blancs is a Gran Reserva cava with a minimum of 36 months’ ageing, made from Chardonnay from the Costers del Segre area, and rounded off with two iconic varieties of the Cava D.O., the Xarel.lo and the Parellada. It boasts a very bright, pale golden hue, with long-lasting beads and mousse. The first nose reveals toasted…