Siebe's birthday with El Grupo Fantastico!

We celebrated Siebe's birthday the last Sunday I was in Spain. Freya and her childhood friend Laura Ann come down Saturday night. Siebe came the next morning because he had a gig on Saturday night. Freya and Laura met in their early teens. They were members of an organization called the Air Cadets. It seems the Royal Air Force has a program for young people in the UK. For more info, check out:

Home - RAF Air Cadets (mod.uk)

Freya and Laura were both officers. Laura was a sergeant and Freya was a corporal. They must have been a couple of pretty tough cookies in their youth! It was sweet to watch the interaction between the ladies. There's nothing like longtime friends!

We went to Celler de l'Aspic in Falset for lunch. Freya says it's her favorite restaurant in Catalunya. I really like it, too. They accept reservations and are happy to prepare vegan entrées for Freya and Siebe with a few days notice. The food is always excellent. The wine list is comprehensive. They have a good selection of imported wines which is very rare in Catalunya. I selected the Venus 2015 Montsant for lunch. Venus is made by René Barbier, Jr. It's mostly Grenache with some Carignan. The wine was drinking spot on!

I ordered the shoulder of cabrito for lunch. It was slow roasted and literally fell off the bone. We just don't get cabrito like that in Texas. 

We took a walking tour of Falset and saw the sights. We walked up to the castle, the old town and the medieval gate. I showed Laura my vineyards on the way to the train station. It was her first time in a vineyard. 

The weekend was a great finale to a wonderful trip. The vintage went perfectly and I'm very happy with my wine from 2022. 

¡SALUD!

Laura and Freya in Plaza Vella, Falset.

Okay, so I tore into the cabrito before taking a picture. The devil made me do it! Also pictured in the Venus 2015.

Freya and the Birthday Boy.

Laura does rehab for old people. She studied literature in College. What a fun and nice lady!

We stopped for coffee after lunch and were over-served with Anis del Mono. 

In Finca Vieja.

 

Super Montse landscapes the front yard!

Ever since our big tree fell over in February 2020, our front yard has been a mess. The tree took out most of the wall by the street and all of Maria's roses. As with most things around here, it took some time to get things put back together. I told Montse I wanted to replant the roses.  She pointed out that roses are very labor intensive if you want them to grow well. That wasn't a problem when Maria was alive and able to work in the garden. Sadly, those days are behind us. Montse suggested we put in some native, drought resistant plants. We went to the nursery and selected several kinds of aromatic plants. We picked out lavender, rosemary, thyme, something they call mint (which really isn't mint) and curry plants. I'd never heard of a curry plant but the leaves smell just like curry powder. The soil in the garden is easy to work so we got everything planted pretty quickly. We put down a weed barrier. Montse covered the whole yard with decorative stone. It looks fantastic!

Thanks, Montse!

 

Josep Maria works his magic!

Josep Maria gave me a tour of his microbiological program. He operates out of his brother-in-law's carpentry shop right next to the Cooperativa.  He makes his own compost from microorganisms he collects and cultures. Josep Maria keeps the cultures in specially made wooden boxes. When he's ready to make a batch of compost, he will inoculate it with the various cultures.

We finally received permission to plant next year. Josep Maria will begin preparing the soil in a couple of weeks. This involves putting down ten tons of manure and tilling it into the ground. Josep Maria asked if I preferred to use chicken or sheep manure. I opted for the sheep even though it's €200 more expensive. The chicken manure they use around here is the foulest-smelling stuff you can imagine. I really don't want to use it that close to the school. The sheep manure smells, too, but it isn't nearly as bad. I suppose Josep Maria will put down some of his bugs at the same time.

The reason all this is necessary is because the soil in my vineyards is very poor in organic content. This isn't quite so much of a problem for established vines but, in order to get a good result with newly planted vines, the soil needs to be a little "richer". The soil in my vineyards is mostly powdered limestone as a result of glacial activity. There are some interesting photos below.

Josep Maria with one of his cultures.

Specially made boxes to keep the cultures warm.

Luna the vineyard dog.

Specially made sprayer for organic materials. Josep Maria makes an application or two of organic foliar fertilizer each year. It's made a tremendous difference in the health of my vines!

Josep Maria Beltran