Harvest 2017

   This has been another hot, dry year in Montsant. I had to irrigate four times. The good news is we had a wonderful harvest! Our yield was a little lower this year (10%) but the quality was excellent. Most vineyards in Montsant were down 20-30%. I feel very fortunate that the Tost family is helping me.
   We picked on September 17th and, as usual, well ahead of other Carinyena producers in the area. The grape chemistry was perfect and I'm happier with this vintage than any other. After six years, I feel like we've finally found the right approach. Don't get me wrong . I've also been happy with past vintages but it seems like we've kicked it up a notch this year.
   The fermentations went well and there is now no malic and only a trace of sugar. I'll give it a few more days and then we'll put it to bed for a few months. The wine has been racked twice and smells and tastes really good! The tannin (which is always a problem with Carinyena) is exceptionally smooth this year.
   As you can see from the photos, we had a beautiful day for harvest. It started off cool (60F) and we were finished by noon (74F). As usual, Marc and Josep assembled a fast and professional crew. We had some of the same folks as last year and they did a great job! We were joined by Arnau who is my neighbor Remy's son. He and Marc are longtime friends. Arnau works as an auto mechanic in Reus.
   We arrived in La Figuera around 1:00 pm. Los Tres Caballeros (Joan, Pep y Albert) were there to receive the fruit. Another Pep, Rene Barbier's assistant winemaker, was on hand to help. The processing went smoothly. They have an interesting system where the stems are taken away by a vacuum/grinder mechanism. It works well but requires a little managing.
   Like always, I continue to learn as I go along. This continues to be an adventure and thanks to everyone!

Finca El Baron

   My neighbor across the street, Philip "El Baron" Lay, has a small farm (finca) just beyond l'Ermita. It's about a hectare (2.47 acres) and he farms it intensively. About half of it is planted to old vine carinyena. The upper vineyard is planted on slate and should probably be classified as Priorat even though he's in DO Montsant. He makes about 100 cases a year of wine sells almost all of it in the UK. It's very good!

   Philip has an impressive orchard of olives, pears, peaches, plums, cherries, several different kinds of apples and several different kinds of figs. I forgot to mention pomegranates. There is also a garden with tomatoes, potatoes, peppers, eggplant, beans, melons, onions and a few other vegetables I can't remember. He's basically self-sufficient for a big part of the year. 

   There is an old casita on the property which he may someday get around to repairing. There is an electrical line that runs through the property and that's very convenient since rural electricity can be expensive in Spain. Philip spends a lot of time working his land and is very generous with sharing the fruits of his land.

   Philip enjoys cooking and entertaining. He's an excellent chef and meals at Castillo El Baron are always a treat. I've met a number of local people at his house and it's always good to make new friends. ¡Gracias, El Baron!

   

Mr. Britt comes to visit

   My longtime friend, Jim Britt, came for a visit in September. I picked him up at the bus station in Tarragona and we proceeded directly to Hospitalet for a little Mediterranean therapy. We split a big cheeseburger at a chiringuito on the beach. It was a beautiful day and the water was just right. Afterward, we went to El Masroig and saw the sights.
   The next day was cool and cloudy so we took a drive around Priorat. We went by the vineyard and then on to Scala Dei and Falset. On Sunday, we went by the winery in La Figuera and drove over to Tarragona for lunch. We had lunch in a Peruvian restaurant by the marina. I've eaten there before and the food is good. We had tapas and then a Peruvian tamale which was just OK.
   Unfortunately, both the amphitheater and archeological museum were closed. We were able to see the amphitheater from above and also toured the cathedral. We enjoyed a traditional vermut (vermouth) in a plaza just around the corner from the old Roman circus.
   The next day (Monday) was September 11 and the national day of Catalunya. Jim and I carried some chairs and a table up to the Plaza Major for the annual sardinara. For one euro they give you a large salted sardine, a loaf of bread, a tomato, an onion, olives and all the wine you can drink at 10:00 a.m. You have to cook the sardine yourself but a fire is provided.
   There was a good turnout and a traditional band that played Catalan music. This particular band was from La Fatarella. I was impressed to see many of the musicians using digital tuning devices. I've noticed that intonation can be a big problem with these traditional bands but, mercifully, these folks had it under control.
   As you can imagine, a siesta was required after the sardinara. In the afternoon, we went to a birthday party for my friend, Sandra, in Cornudella. Sandra teaches English there and invited some of her students. Judith was our hostess and we spent a pleasant few hours.
   Jim caught a train for San Sebastian the next morning. He spent a couple of days there and then flew on to Milan. Jim had tickets to La Scala and saw an opera featuring Placido Domingo. He then went on to Venice for a few days.
   Jim returned to Barcelona and I drove up there to meet him. We toured the Barri Gotic and Las Ramblas before having tapas with some friends later in the day. It was a great pleasure having Jim here and I hope he comes back!
                                                             ¡Gracias, Amigo!