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Ruben Parera, Farmer and Winemaker At Finca Parera, Creates Wine Reflecting The Terroir Of Upper Penedes, Spain

3/14/2018

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by Patrick Ogle

Ruben Parera is a farmer and a winemaker.

He is, in fact, a fourth generation farmer in Penedes, Spain, an area becoming known for its natural wines made from native grapes. Finca Parera is a fairly small producer, creating only around 1500 cases of wine a year. If you find bottles in the USA you can count yourself lucky. These are truly wines that reflect where the grapes grew up; the land is what you taste in your glass.

“The first step is always the vineyard and the agriculture with which you will work the plot." says Parera.

They are also a Biodynamic producer, following the rigorous set of rules that entails. Parera says the Biodynamic work and training with an individual tutor (one for each strain) is very important in the health of the grapes. Their wines use native yeasts and minimal sulpher. Finca Parera do not interfere in the development of the grapes with the use of chemicals but relying instead through positioning of the vines to garner optimum light.

"This way we could have a super healthy and balanced grape." he says.

They sort grapes by hand with skins and stems, use wild yeast and employ time in a clay pot for aging.

Why go to the extra effort to be a Biodynamic winemaker? It is an easy question for Parera.

"I am a Biodynamic winemaker because I am a Biodynamic farmer-- from this point of view, you cannot do one thing without the other. When you are Biodynamic in the field, you have to be in the cellar! Natural without fear,” he says. “Demeter certification is only a matter of market and sales because without certification we would be the same, doing the same thing."

One of the many notable wines from Finca Parera is Khronos Penedes Sumoll. Sumoll is a Penedes grape; little is grown there (or anywhere else in the world). Most figures place Sumoll at less than 300 acres in production worldwide. It has a reputation as a grape that is difficult to grow and to make into wine. These considerations are secondary to Parera.

History is first.


"The Sumoll grape is indigenous in High Penedes. Many years ago this red grape, with Garnatxa, Carinyena and other locals grapes, were the most planted grapes here. This is the true history here and I have always thought that this variety would yield very fine, deep and well-aged wines." says Parera.

Khronos is a wonderful wine to drink young but it could certainly age. In describing it there is the temptation to compare it to more well known varietals but it is its own thing, its own unique wine with flavors and nuances unique to the grape and, more important, to Penedes.

"Sumoll has a good acidity and perfect tannins for aging in bottle or claytank or concrete tank. (It has) better variables for aging and good variables for fresh sensations in old wines." he says.

He says he has tasted this in other Sumolls including Els Jelipins from Gloria Garriga as an example of a fine version of the wine.


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Parera is quick, and eloquent, in his dismissal  of the notion of wine as art. To him it is more a trade, the result of hard work rather than inspiration.

"I do not think that it is art, but the ancestral trade of the farmer/winemaker (vigneron) that any person with sensitivity, training and practice could develop. I am the fourth generation of farmers and I love the land and respect the salut (health), time in cellar--is not an art, but a sensitive execution of an office." says Parera. "This I believe. For the art of sculpture, painting, dancing, etcetera you need a special natural gift since childhood, no? Something already predisposed to that artistic genius, right?"

It isn’t about art then but it is certainly about the terroir, the land.

Their land is more than vineyards. It includes organic cherry orchards, the first in Penedes as well as vegetables, almonds and olives. Finca Parera is in Upper Penedes, the part of the region furthest from the sea. The area sports a high altitude and calcareous-clay soil. Upper Penedes (or "High Penedes") also boasts large day to night temperature shifts which is generally a good thing for wine grapes; sunshine in the daytime and coolness to recover from heat at night.
Their vines range from young to nearly 80 years old. Finca Parera is agriculture focused and the land and its characteristics that make this possible.

"You can do things safely, but now we are focused on returning agricultural life to my daily life; we have many boxes of bees, a new orchard, replanted fruit of old varieties, we make marmalades and oils. (we want to) return to the farm a little!" he says.
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Parera has also opened a bar, Salvatge, featuring natural wines in Barcelona. The bar is currently open and has wines in bulk.

Parera says he is interested in a number of other varietals native to Penedes from the white varietals: Picapoll, Carinyena Blanca, Sumoll Blanc, Sant Jaume, Escanyavelles and black types such as:  Mandó, Rogenc, Garrut, Brocada.

They may or may not wind up producing wine from these.

"These grapes are 'ancestral' grapes, because today they are not planted in our country.For me it's investment in knowledge!” says Parera. “In the future maybe I make wine, maybe; today this is only for studying the vines and grapes in the vineyards."

Parera, himself, enjoys wines from Catalonia: Carriel dels Vilars, Recaredo, Joan Franquet, Carlania, Joan Asens, Clos Lentiscus and others, from Spain: Marenas, Daniel Ramos, Lagar do Merens and Puerta del Viento and from around the world: Foradori, Lewandowski, Chateau Laffitte and Mas del Perie.

The list of wines he enjoys is broad and is proof you need not focus in on one type of wine. Every wine you drink need not be Biodynamic nor, on the other hand, do they have to be ultra-traditional offerings. There are wines from all parts of the production spectrum for all tastes.

He says that people's expectation, anticipation about new wine is, in itself, reason enough to taste different wines. Adding that all wine lovers need to try new wines, from different unfamiliar grapes.

"Go ahead to taste the natural wines from the world!" says Parera.


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Find out more HERE

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Cellers De Can Suriol, A Penedes Wine Producer, Make Inexpensive,Quality Wine, Using Exacting Methods--And It Isn't All About Cava, An Interview With Assis Suriol

6/27/2017

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by Patrick Ogle

Cellers de Can Suriol make Cava but they make more than just Spain's sparkling wine. In addition to the three Cavas they produce still wines from xarel-lo, parellada and a local clone of tempranillo (ull de llebre).


All the wines at Suriol are produced with practices you often find in much more expensive wines--there is no dosage in the sparklers, native yeasts, organic grapes and limited sulphur. They do not cut corners.

"I am doing what is really necessary to make wines, taking care of each process but leaving the grapes and the wine develop its own potential," says Assis Suriol. "I am a farmer and the winemaker is the grape, that means that I have to take care about each process in the vineyard and drive, in a good way, the fermentations and the products in the winery to have incredible, good products."

They produce their cavas using both time honored techniques and modern science.

"I am continuing the heritage and the knowledge from my father and grandfather. Our idea is the same and always mixes ancient knowledge with a scientific approach to make incredible sparkling wines, Cava and Penedès wines," he says.


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Suriol notes that for a long time exports of cava were mostly from big winemakers shipping wine out in big quantities to make as much money as possible. The market was less than sophisticated. He says that now, in a more mature market, it is easier for people to understand and producers can explain the details to their customers. Consumers appreciate the details, how much care goes into making wines like those produced at Suriol.

In recent years some producers have become dissatisfied with Cava and its reputation for mass producing sparkling wines. It even led one noted producer, the descendant of the man who "invented" cava, to break away and start a new D.O.  Raventos i blanc are the winemakers who created Conca del Riu Anoia. You can read an interview with Pepe Raventos HERE.

"I feel that together is always better to promote our Catalan culture and incredible soil but it is Raventós' choice." says Suriol.

Suriol says that, more and more, he finds interesting farm Cavas in the market. He also sees more people being attracted to cavas as quality increases while prices stay low.

"The price of our Cava is inexpensive because we are farmers and we don’t have any marketing department. That means that it takes years to sell our products." he says.

This time, this process, is a good thing. They are growing their business organically, letting it develop at its own pace. Ultimately Suriol hopes their prices can rise as people around the world fall in love with their wines. Currently their rose and brut Cavas sell for $14 to $16. Keep in mind these are vintage wines.
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Suriol make more than Cava. The produce wines from xarel-lo, a grape some Americans may know. But they also make wine using another Cava grape, paralleda.

"Xarel·Lo is the main grape in Penedés because it is easy in the fields and easy in the winery, good production and high quality to make a Cava or a still wine. It is like our Chardonnay. For me it is an incredible wine in mouth feel," he says. "Parellada is a really great wine but it need more patience in the vineyard because it is very hard to produce-- low quantities with good quality. It needs altitude (more than 300 meters) and moreover, in the winery, it is difficult to work with this grape because it is very light and delicate. For me it is an incredible wine with earthy and floral notes and with a very soft and acid mouthfeel. Xarel·lo is like our king and parellada our queen."

The do several different xarel-lo wines and Suriol says they can be quite different depending on soil, weather and the people making the wine. There are simple xarel-lo wines and more complicated versions.

Penedes, a wine area South/Southwest of Barcelona, is an area known for white wines and cava but Suriol produce tempranillos called El Pelegri and Sang de Drac.

"El Pelegrí is ull de llebre that is the Catalán clone of tempranillo, like cousins! Working in organic and biodynamic helps our vines to be more and more powerful. Our wine, Sang de Drac, is a project started in 2008 and I think that is a great wine thanks to the powerful and earthiness from our vines. Also it is important the use of chestnut tree casks that permit our wine to breath and be wonderful on the nose."

Chestnut is purportedly richer in antioxidants and some phenolic compounds than oak but it is also more porous. Conclusive studies on the relative effects of each kind of wood have yet to be done. One such study can be found HERE.

The Suriol family have been working this land for hundreds of years before the USA even existed and this fact informs the wine they make.

"We are farmers from El Castell de Grabuac, we normally say the the house made the man who lives inside. That means that we live in the farmhouse and inside the vineyards which gives a full connection with the land, nature and biodiversity," he says. "For example I only have one mission for all my life: make the Castell de Grabuac house and the Can Suriol estate will be healthier than what my father gave to me, very easy but a lot of work! Moreover I only use traditional grapes, chestnut tree casks, wild yeasts, concrete tanks under the floor, because it is my way to protect the heritage of almost 200 years and more than 100 years making wine in our land."
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Pepe Raventós, Of Raventós I Blanc, Says The Past Matters But Every Generation Of Winemaker Must Follow Their Own Dream

8/16/2016

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by Patrick Ogle

T
he land and vineyards of Raventós Estate have been in the Raventós family since five years after Columbus sailed for the Americas. They have been making wine on this land for over 500 years and first made sparkling wine in 1872 but the latest member of the clan to run the estate, Pepe Raventós, doesn't place as much emphasis on history as you might think.

"Having this long heritage doesn’t mean much. I think every generation has to start from scratch, and has to follow its own dream—not trying to do things as they have been done forever. But of course past matters." he says.

The people went before lay groundwork but the interpretation in the now is up to the new generation. What is most important is the land, the terroir and making something authentic.


"When I was a kid I used to spend the summers and harvest time in the family estate. For me tradition and modernity is Conca del Riu Anoia this means doing not the best wines but the most honest thanks to a soil, a climate and a valley," says Raventós. "We keep doing the same formula that my antecessor Josep Raventós Fatjó did in 1872. He was the creator of formula that nowadays is used for Cava. He understood the great potential of the grapes, the mineral structure of our oldest soils and, most importantly, that to become  world class you have to be authentic. And we have the same dream: to create quality sparkling wines."

Raventos i Blanc produces a number of wonderful sparkling wines including;
   Manuel Raventós Negra, Textures de Pedra, De La Finca. De Nit and L'Hereu Blanc de Blancs.


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The Spanish sparkling wine most Americans are familiar with is Cava but Conca del Riu Anoia is no longer a part of the Cava D.O. (this is the Spanish version of the French A.O.C., Italian D.O.C and American A.V.A.). Conca del Riu Anoia is now its own D.O. and has much more rigorous standards than Cava. Ask yourself, as a consumer, what you think of Cava compared to Champagne? Are they of the same quality? Any objective wine-lover will answer with a resounding "No."

This was a big step for a descendant of the man who created Cava but Raventos felt that they could get something more than a mass produced sparkler from their land.

"Conca was born because I want this region to be known in the rest of the world. I want that sparkling wines from Conca talk about of prestigious and viticulture," he says. "We went out from DO Cava in 2012 and since then we’ve been working for positioning Raventós at the same level of the grower champagnes. It has been a communication work to position the brand. We are not any more at the same level of Cava that has an image of cheap and affordable."

Grower champagnes are those that are made by the actual growers of the grapes. Many large production champagnes buy grapes and may not even own any actual vineyards. Grower Champagnes are usually thought to be of higher quality than those that are mass produced (you can also generate fun arguments by making this statement around some people).

When Conca hived off from Cava the world took note.

"There are a lot of people that has noticed this movement. The journalists and influencers have supported and praised it. For example, we were featured in The Wall Street Journal or New York Times talking about our decision," says Raventós. "The restaurant menus also received and welcomed this new DO and they did a differentiation between the different zones: Champagne /
Conca Del Riu Anoia / Cava. The same occurred in specialty wine stores."

Other producers left as well and some who remained were unhappy. One called those leaving “cowardly.” Although there was no explanation of how leaving a known brand for the unknown could be that.
Raventós  says this new D.O. has impacted Cava itself and small steps are being taken in Cava and Penedès to improve quality. Cava has a new sub classification, Cava de Paraje Calificado. He is a little skeptical about these initial moves.

"For us they are absolutely tiny and confusing." he says."... I don’t think the New sub classification in the D.O. Cava, Cava de Paraje Calificado, will really make a difference to Cava’s image."

He says that while Conca is about a concrete, quite specific area the new cava classification is about a wine made in a single plot but from different regions. There are other differences but ultimately the new Cava classification is about method rather than terroir.

"For us it’s not enough and we go much further." he says. (see table below)

Raventós also notes that other wineries in other regions, Artadi in Rioja, for instance, have become dissatisfied with their D.O. and have left.

"Overall in Spain is having a pretty movement in favor of the winemaker to protect and recover the Spanish vineyard forcing the D.O.’s to change their regulations." he says.
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How specifically has the new Conca D.O. improved Raventós wines?

"To achieve this new standards, we did a lot of work before that. First of all, we did some studies of the soil.These studies were conducted by Olivier Tregoat (an expert on Bordeaux soils) and Lluís Cabrera (professor of geology at  the University of Barcelona) and they showed that the soils on the Raventós i Blanc estate on the river terraces date back to the oldest period of the Penedès depression - 16 million years ago - and are home to a large number of marine
fossils," he says. "The main characteristic of the soils is the deep galera - layers of marine fossil sediments encrusted in the clay and loam with a calcareous base."

They removed foreign varietals such as pinot noir, chardonnay and cabernet sauvignon and planted local grapes. This is the opposite of what you are seeing in many parts of the world. The so-called international varietals are replacing indigenous varietals virtually everywhere. There are a number of noted wine writers who champion the destruction of indigenous grapes with the "superior" international varietals. Raventós and Conca also stopped making some base wines that were not a minimum of 80 percent estate grown.

"Since we took the decision there hasn’t been a change in the spirit because in some way we converted our estate in the same that my intercessors used to  work. With Conca I want to reflect the same values of innovation, passion for this area of  Penedès and conviction to our (traditions) that all my family had in the past," he says. "For me it wasn’t something radical but something natural. Honestly, this decision has made us take difficult decisions, being very strict with the work we do, and strongly respectful with our land, nature and forms of viticulture."

One difference between Cava and Conca is that the latter uses only native grapes--some of which are not used in Cava.

"To make wines that would most faithfully express our terroir, we decided only to use native grape varieties that historically adapted well to our soils," says Raventós. "As part of our venture to convert our estate from organic to bio=dynamic, we decided to root up foreign varieties - the chardonnay vines in the La Plana area - and re-graft in our youngest plots with the aim of growing 100 percent native grape varieties. We believe that best varieties for sparkling wine in our zone of macabeu, xarel.lo, sumoll and bastard negre."

But the grapes--xarel-lo, parellada and macabeo--what makes them the right combination for great sparkling wine?

"These three grapes make a good sparkling wine as they are the three varieties used by my ancestor when he created the formula. The xarel-lo gives complexity, aging, volume and structure," he says. "It´s the variety that adapts best to the Mediterranean climate. Macabeo grape gives elegance, balance, and acidity and parellada grape softness and a floral touch."

He declines to make any direct comparison with Champagne or its grapes.

"We cannot compare the grapes of our area as they are different ones. Ours adapt better to Mediterranean climate," says Raventos. "They are two different things, neither better nor worse. They have different flavors, different styles."

Some of the lesser known grapes Raventós i Blanc use include sumoll, bastard negre and red xarel-lo

"For our blanc de noirs, Textures de Pedra, we use three local red varieties sumoll, bastard negre and red xarel-lo. Sumoll it’s not used in Cava as it’s not allowed. It gives the best acidity to the wines. Bastard negre gives strength and dynamism as well as density and texture," he says. "For so many years we thought we had monastrell in the estate, but after analyzing its DNA we realized it was bastard negre. It’s not trousseau/ bastardo nero in Galicia and Portugal. It’s the same as bastardo nero in Sardinia, morastel in France and graciano in Rioja. Red xarel-lo is more rustic, gives structure and more maturation but maintains good the acidity."
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Raventós i blanc make more than just sparkling wines. They make lovely still wines with one of the grapes used to make their sparklers, xarel-lo. Two of these wines are Silencis and Extrem.

"They are our two natural non filtered wines the youngest ones we produce in Raventós i Blanc. They have a silky character but they are bodied wine. For those who haven’t try them I would tell them; "If you want to experience with something new and very mineral, try them”," he sas. "Xarel-lo is a white variety and the most expressive grape from El Penedès. Bright, unique, it is the essence of our territory. It has an excellent adaptation to the soil and climate of the area."

They even tried a red wine made from non-native grapes (cabernet sauvignon, syrah and monastrell). Raventós says it was a trend in the 1980s and that the two non-native varietals do not work as well as local ones. They still grown monastrell (aka mourvedre) and even use it in a sparkling wine but the cab and syrah are gone.

"We don’t think it’s a good choice working with grapes that don’t adapt to your climate. Everybody makes mistakes." he says.

He says his plans for the winery are simple. It is his objective to encourage his team to have a clear purpose and a single idea--prestige.

Raventós has just moved back to Sant Sadurni with all of his family to live in the farmhouse his family has occupied for the past 21 generations.

After all history does some allure.
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