Wines of Catalunya–Edetaria Edetana
Joan Angel Lliberia of Edetaria Edetana with His Father, Angel
“I wanted to have in our book, a phenomenal Garnacha Blanca producer,” says Jorge, our Portfolio Director of Iberian and South American Wines. “And then I found out that Terra Alta has 90% of the holdings…I met with Joan Angel and his wines were so clean and expressive…”
Working with decades old bush-trained vines on steep terraced sloaps, Joan Angel Lliberia of Edetaria Edetana has been making wine since 2003. His grandfather produced bulk wines, as did his father Angel, an oenologist who sold his grapes to the local cooperative while he studied winemaking in France for ten years. “We have 30ha now,” says Joan Angel, “but 25ha of our vineyards have 30+ year old vines…and our old carignan vines are 80 years old.” And because the vineyards experience a Mediterranean climate, “there’s not much sickness in the vineyard,” adds Joan Angel. “The vineyards work themselves without the addition of chemicals.
Vineyards at Edetaria Edetana
“To obtain minerality and freshness in a Mediterranean climate, we must work the vineyard by hand,” says Joan Angel. “In the cellar we only work with big barrels to retain the aromas of the terroir. We use only natural yeasts to show the maximum authenticity…we work with five different terroirs, with different grapes. We try to keep the authenticity of the different blocks, with different plots in different bottles.”
Here, Garnacha is the focus. Edetaria Edetana is “in the forefront of that area,” says Jorge, “in taking Garnacha to the next level…[some of] his Garnacha Negra has mutated into Garnacha Peluda, which means ‘hairy’ [or 'downy']. The back of the leaf has changed and developed hairs on the back of the leaf, which retains better moisture…it lends acidity to wines, so most of his wines contain Garnacha Peluda.”
Working with five soil types (tapas, tapas blanc, vall, panal and codols), each with their own microclimate, Joan Angel says, “I’m only 47 years old. The reason to plant these vines in the soils is not mine, it’s my father’s. I always ask my father which grapes to plant in which soil.” For he’s the planter of their 60 year old vines.
Joan Angel
Review from Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar:
2007 Bodega Edetaria Edetano Tinto Terra Alta–(40% garnatxa peluda, 35% syrah and 25% cabernet sauvignon): Vivid ruby. A powerfully scented bouquet displays ripe cherry, blackberry, mocha and cracked pepper, with attractive floral lift. Gentle acidity adds energy to the deep dark berry flavors, with fine-grained tannins building on the finish. Very fresh and pretty delicious right now. 90 Points
Nowadays, the possibilities seem endless. One reason, I submit, is that with little access to the classically great wines, yet with a public thirst for greatness that far exceeds that of 30 years ago, importers, distributors, sommeliers and consumers themselves have been compelled to seek out wines that nobody paid attention to 25 years ago, if they even existed.
The world has certainly gotten smaller, and thankfully that means more wines within reach of our fingertips and lips. Worldly delights indeed! We’re thankful to have so many friends who make great wines!