From a climatic point of view, the year 2019 was a little bit particular. With regard to rainfall, months of January, February and March presented very little rain. On the contrary, the month of April was very rainy, while again May, June and July registered low rainfall, and August was almost without rain. In September, two episodes of rain fell at the right time to permit to the grapes to finish their maturation. At the end of October, rain fell in big quantities that permit to the soil to holds water and accumulate water reserves for 2020 season.
Otherwise, temperatures were warm, averaging 1°C above the seasonal averages of the last decade, with the exception of April, May and June whose temperatures are precisely situated in the average of these last years.
Harvest started the 30th of August, 2019 with Chardonnay grapes and ended the 3rd of October with black Grenache variety to make red wine. So firstly, harvest started avec Chardonnay variety the 30th of August, 2019, 2 weeks later than 2018, followed with Chenin the 2nd of September and 6th of September with white Grenache for the elaboration of white wine “Caminante”. This year, the novelty was the harvest of Xarel-lo planted 3 years ago, and then it was the first year that vines produced grapes.
White wines are well balanced, with a good acidity and a big aromatic load, thus 2019 will be a really good year for white wines. The wine elaborated with grapes of Xarel-lo has excellent quality: very aromatic, with flavors of citrus and flowers, a very good acidity, a lot of complexity and minerality, that will result a great wine which will be named “Clos Adèle”.
Black Grenache used for the rosé Caminito was harvested the 3rd of September. The rosé has a very pale colour, with a lot of minerality thanks to the terroir of granite of Terra Remota, and floral and fresh fruit aromas.
Harvest for red varieties followed the 9th of September with Syrah, the 19th of September with Tempranillo to make the Tan Natural, the 23rd of September with Cabernet Sauvignon and the 3rd of October with the last part of black Grenache. Each vine plot was harvested at its optimum moment of maturity thanks to the rain the 10th and 21st of September, that permits at each plot to continue to grow and mature without any blocking of tannins maturation.
Red wines are of high quality, really fruity, tannic and soft, with a lot of freshness and elegance. For now, they just need to be aged in oak casks, oak barrels and stainless steel tank depending of each lot and variety.
Generally, we are very happy about the quantity produced and especially of the high quality of white, red and rosé wines of 2019, which promises to be a great year.