New wines from Castell D’Age
By David Keck
“Our wines and cavas reflect the tradition of our ancestors and the approach taken by the new generation. They are the result of our faithful adherence to the principles of respect for the land. Land which allows us the privilege of refining them, year after year.”
We wrote about the arrival of these wines back in February (read the blog post HERE), about how this winery, owned and operated by three generations of women in La Beguda Baixa in Alt-Penedès. About their move to organics, then biodynamics, and about the unique soil types. We brought in two wines which have been purchased, consumed, and enjoyed across the state! We are very excited to bring in two more, perfect for the summer months. Both have extremely limited quantity, so get them while you can.
Castell d’Age ‘Anne Marie’ Brut Nature Reserva Cava 2017
There’s a lot going on with this wine. First of all, the region is famous for Cava production and we went a little off-track to bring in the No SO2 still wines before the Cava, but such are the vagaries of shipping right now! That said, with this last shipment, we got one of the truly outstanding cavas from this estate. A blend of traditional varieties (40% Macabeu, 40% Xarel-lo and 20% Parellada), the wine is Brut Nature, meaning that it receives no dosage (ie: no addition of sweetness before corking), so at 0.8 grams/Liter of sugar, it is VERY lean in the world of sparkling wines. It is also vintage (most Cava is NV), and receives at least 20 months of time on the lees to develop richness, texture, and character. In short, this wine is one of the only organic and biodynamic Cavas that we’ve seen out there, is bright but rich, complex, but chuggable, and perfect for this smoking hot weather.
Castell d’Age ‘Fragments’ Rosat 2020
From the Can Torres estate, this rosé is tiny production from biodynamic Syrah grown in stony chalk soils. The grapes are harvested in the second half of September and fermented with indigenous yeasts. This is definitely not rosé for the faint of heart—ripe and creamy with amazing red fruit and intensity, this is a perfect wine to go with summer dishes—chicken on the grill, salmon or other rich fish dishes, even a hearty salad with roasted veggies.
Enjoy and look for some more exciting wines coming in soon as ships are finally starting to dock! Been a challenging start to the summer for international shipping (and domestic, actually)!