{"id":695,"date":"2013-09-25T15:39:09","date_gmt":"2013-09-25T14:39:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.northeastwine.org.uk\/Blog\/?p=695"},"modified":"2013-09-25T16:03:20","modified_gmt":"2013-09-25T15:03:20","slug":"mas-vicenc","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.northeastwine.org.uk\/Blog\/mas-vicenc\/","title":{"rendered":"Mas Vicen\u00e7, D.O. Tarragona"},"content":{"rendered":"

The first visit of the AdVintage<\/a> September 2013 wine tour of Tarragona was to a small family producer in the Alt Camp area of Catalonia, on the edge of Conca de Barber\u00e0.<\/p>\n

\"Family<\/a>Originally a small agricultural holding bought by Vicen\u00e7 Ferr\u00e9 in 1953, 4 generations worked the land until 2005, when the 2 young Ferr\u00e9 Morat\u00f3 brothers, Vicen\u00e7 and Xavier (Xavi), decided to break tradition and concentrate on viticulture. From 4000 bottles then the vineyards now cover 42ha and produce 50,000 bottles a year.<\/p>\n

Our guide for the morning was Xavi, a sommelier who studied business and hospitality in Liverpool. Vicen\u00e7, who trained as a winemaker in the Rh\u00f4ne and Priorat, was on hand to say hello and help his brother during the group tasting at the end of the tour.<\/p>\n

The vineyards are in the highest part of the region just south of the town of Cabra del Camp, with spectacular views of the nearby mountains topped by wind-turbines. On the dry terrain and without irrigation the vines work hard to find water, a typical indicator of quality if the grapes are handled right. The fruit used represents the best 25% of the vineyard production, with the remainder sold to the local cooperative.<\/p>\n

\"Mas<\/a><\/p>\n

2 wines (from a range of 5) define Mas Vicen\u00e7; the light, fruity and sweet El Vi del Vent<\/strong> (Wine of the Wind) and the rich and structured red, Rombes d\u2019Arelqui<\/strong> (Harlequin Diamonds).<\/p>\n

El Vi del Vent<\/strong> was first made in 2008 for the October Fira del Vent<\/a> (Fair of the Wind) in nearby El Pla de Santa Maria. Organisers wanted a new wine for the festival – one from this year\u2019s harvest – to accompany the sweet cakes also being made. Mas Vicen\u00e7 accepted the challenge and harvested Muscat (Petit Grains) in early September before bottling in less than a month (around the 14th<\/sup> October) \u2013 it continued each year afterwards and is now a tradition (ironically the cakes never appeared as the local bakers couldn\u2019t get them ready in time!).<\/p>\n

L\u2019Arelqui<\/strong> is the prestige wine of Mas Vicen\u00e7, equal amounts of Cabernet Sauvignon and Tempranillo (known by the Catalan name of Ull de Llebre \u2013 \u201cEye of the Hare\u201d) and barrel aged for 12 months in French Oak. Each year the production of this wine undergoes some small change, whether in the barrels used or grape proportion, to try and further improve it.<\/p>\n

The winery is compact, showing its gradual conversion from a farm, allowing Xavi to easily show us around the facility as he explained the different wines and techniques used. Near the store and presentation area fermentation tanks and new barrels stood next to a small press, while underneath is the cellar with barrels of Nit de Lluna<\/strong>, their easy drinking Tempranillo\/Syrah blend. Low-volume bottle-filling, corking and labeling machines lead onto another barrel-room (a converted swimming pool) for d\u2019Arelqui.<\/p>\n

\"Courtyard\"<\/a>A picturesque courtyard and patio made for a perfect tasting area, where 5 of the wines were poured along with the delicious Olive Oil they also make on-site.<\/p>\n

The wines;<\/p>\n