Castelle D’Age
By David Keck
In the Alt Penedès, a land most famous for Cava production (see the previous post about Montsarra Cava), there is a small village named La Beguda Baixa. In that village reside a grandmother, mother, and daughter—three generations, starting with Aurèlia Figueras, followed by her daughter, Anne Marie Comtesse, and continued by the youngest in the line, Olivia Junyent.
Anne Marie Comtesse moved the family estate to organic viticulture over 20 years ago, and this was taken even further with the move to biodynamics by the current generation.
The vines are planted on six individual estates, viewed as their own little ecosystems, with the grape varieties planted according to soil and climate. The estates are comprised of three primary soil typed: calcareous, llicorella (black slate most famous in Priorat, but scattered throughout this part of Spain), and clay loam.
Winemaking is done according to a slow, methodical, natural process. The wines ferment with indigenous/ambient yeast, in a combination of large format oak barrels and amphoras. Nothing is rushed, and all the wines are allowed to rest in the cellars for the optimum amount of time before release.
These wines seem a natural fit for the VT Wine Shepherd portfolio and we are very excited to have them in the 802! We started with two wines that exemplify a lot of the beliefs of the family at Castell d’Age.
Small amounts were brought into the state to start out, but more is on the way. Drink in good health. Cheers!
100% Garnatxa Blanca ‘Orange’ 0% SO2 $20.29
The name sort of says it all—this wine is made without any fining or filtration, from 100% Grenache Blanc (Garnatxa Blanca in the local dialect), that is grown in the clay loam soils of the Can Pujades estate. It is macerated for 8 days on its skin, giving it a light, but noticeable, orange hue. A beautifully textured wine that will pair beautifully at the table with dishes that want a white wine, but call for something with a bit more intensity and structure.
100% Garnatxa 0% SO2 $20.29
Similar to the wine on the left, the red Garnatxa is made without fining or filtration, no sulfur added, and is bright and shows the gorgeous character of the fruit grown in llicorella soils in the Can Gener estate. Low-yielding vines (around 2 tons/acre or 5000 kg/ha) on this property are harvested at the end of September to produce a wine that is simultaneously rich and broad, while still maintaining a clean, bright character in the fruit. Ideal for these winter months.