A tasting at the AVA VI winery
Tasting at a winery is an attractive experience. You know that you will drink good wine, accompanied by good food, and that you will almost certainly leave happy and satisfied. This does not mean that there can be no surprises or that all the tastes are the same, or very lacking.
With the Serra de Tramuntana behind us, we arrive at the Es Pla de Biniali estate, in the Es Raiguer region, where the AVA Vi winery is located. Julio, sommelier and today master of ceremonies, welcomes us, loaded with a good handful of figs that he has just picked for the occasion. Presentations aside, Julio sets to work to give us all the details about the winery and the wine they make there. The ambassador of the winery does not skimp on details, he talks about the mantonegro, the white press and the callet as the main indigenous varieties they work with, as well as the main international references to try to locate and understand a little better the differences most notable.
Explanations soon return declarations of love and intent. A way of understanding wine in which experience is not enough as a starting point. Julio confesses his gratitude to Thomas and Alexandra Neumann. They are the owners of the winery and as such demand quality and performance from their products but are dreamy and accept that excellence involves risk and patience. And this is precisely what Julio conveys to us, his constant search for unknown paths or to put it another way, the sommelier with the help of the oenologist Tomeu Llabrés seeks how to break down the barriers of indigenous varieties that they have.
A torrent of information overwhelms us and Julio knows it’s time to show where his dreams are, bold but real and palpable. After showing us the tanks we go down to where the wine is that is in the period of aging inside the barrels. Julio plays with us and introduces us to a white press that is forming in a new boot. Then, to try to understand his game, he makes us taste another white press, this one, in a boot with a few uses. The truth is hard to understand, but all this is perceived, which is what this game is about. The nuances, the tempos, the values of the same wine, reinforced or stripped by the boot where they are formed. We enjoy being part of those secrets, stories and nerves that he confesses to us behind every vintage.
The evening leads us to a well-stocked table, with food to accompany the different tastings that we will enjoy below. I don’t know if it’s the effect of the wine but I doubt if it’s the sun that’s hiding or if it’s the Sierra that has grown and stood in front of it so as not to miss every detail. The afternoon has taken place in an evening that passes between white presses, alleys and black coats. White, pink and black. Valuable and precious small productions that, to Julio’s satisfaction, have a very good start and augur well to reach the sales forecasts for this strange and intense 2021.
Cheers!
Salut!
