Catalan Wines

A strike at the heart of DO Cava

by  |  06-09-2019

Yesterday, September 5th, three groups of viticulturists in the Penedès region (Unió de Pagesos, JARC, and Viticultors del Penedès), held a planned harvest strike against the ongoing grape pricing scandal in DO Cava. More than... more »

Carinyena Blanca: Tasting a grape that’s finding its place in Empordà

by  |  13-08-2019

Catalunya’s Denomination of Origin Empordà has just announced an institutional plan to “realize the potential” of the grape, Carinyena Blanca (White Carignan.) Going forward this will involve making it a permitted grape as per their... more »

Ribera del Duero to shine a light on their whites

by  |  01-08-2019

The Boletín Oficial del Estado (Spanish State Bulletin) isn’t light reading. There are sticky gobs of technical announcements for absolutely all facets of the government but, if one is willing to hone in on the... more »

The newest Spanish Vino de Pago: Vallegarcía

by  |  12-06-2019

What once was 14 is now 15 as the EU has just published official recognition of the newest Vino de Pago in Spain: Vallegarcía. Maybe you’ve heard of this winery of the same name but... more »

A bit of the pre-Douro: Niepoort – Diálogo Tinto 2015

by  |  03-06-2019

Today I find myself freshly arrived in the Douro Valley, apparently slipping in on the end of a mini heatwave. The last time I came here, I ended up driving through rampant forest fires. This... more »

Velles Vinyes: DOQ Priorat releases the most stringent “old vines” definition in Spain & maybe the world

by  |  30-05-2019

When I first started getting into wine, if it said “Old Vines” on the label I would usually buy it. Being Californian, Zinfandel had a regular spot in my shopping cart but this grew to... more »

The release of the “Paratge”. DOQ Priorat’s newest step up the Burgundian pyramid

by  |  13-05-2019

Go and stand outside for a second. All that scenery you can see in front of you with your naked eye would be what is called in Catalan a, paratge and this week, the DOQ... more »

DO Pla de Bages gets another bump

by  |  27-04-2019

DO Pla de Bages in Central Catalunya has just announced the official addition of Celler Sant Miquel d’Oló. Normally, a new cellar added to a DO wouldn’t merit note but given that it takes the... more »

Zayane, a new tribe on the Moroccan wine map

by  |  05-04-2019

It was 2015. I was slightly younger, living in a different village, and most importantly, thought nothing of going to Morocco, in July, during Ramadan. That was an adventure worthy of the hardest of face-palm... more »

The Mas Doix – Lede Family partnership

by  |  28-03-2019

In Priorat, you hear a great deal but often know very little. This was shown no better than hearing changes were afoot last year with Mas Doix in the village Poboleda but not really knowing... more »