Ànima de l’Avi Arrufí Blanc

<< Previous wine    Next wine >>

Anima de L'Avi Arrufi Blanco is an estate-bottled wine made by Celler Piñol with grapes grown in the region of Terra Alta, located south of Barcelona. It is made with 100% Garnacha Blanca, also called white Grenache. Today, Terra Alta's beautiful panoramic landscape is home to 35% of the world's Garnacha Blanca vineyards and 70-75% of those in Spain. The Piñol family has been tending these vines for four generations. It's made from vines that are over sixty years old. L'Avi Arrufí means, "Granfather Arrufi," the man who founded Celler Piñol in 1945. The story of Cellar Piñol mirrors the ascendance of Spanish wines in world markets over the past ten years, a story of how a reverence for old, treasured vineyards and the best family traditions have been combined with new winemaking methods to make the finest wines possible. Similar to Yecla and Vinos de Madrid, Terra Alta is one of Spain's up-and-coming wine regions with an identity built on exciting projects and progressive innovation. Juanjo G. Piñol and Cristina Borrull are the winemakers. Juanjo's mother Josefina remains in charge of the family cellar.

GRAPE:

100% Garnacha Blanca

PAIRING SUGGESTIONS:

Very gastronomic: ideal with risottos, paella, smoked fish, fatty fish such as salmon and white meats.

VINIFICATION AND AGING:

Maximum expression of old vines made with 100% white Grenache, aged during 7 months in an concrete egg-shaped tank.

LOCATION, SOIL, CLIMATE:

The vineyards are located a few miles southwest of Priorat, within the Terra Alta DO (Zone 5) in Catalunya's Tarragona province in northeastern Spain. In this remote region, the winemaking tradition dates back to the Romans, around the 2nd or 3rd Century. The winery and vineyards are in the town of Batea, situated at 356 meters (1,168 ft.) elevation. The soils are composed of 95% limestone and 5% clay. Yields are low (24.5 hectoliters per hectare, or 3,500 kilograms per hectare), which enhances the concentration and complexity in the grapes. For climate, the average temperature from April-October is 67.3F. The hot day and warm-to-moderate night temperatures make Terra Alta a drier and warmer region than Montsant or Priorat. These conditions produce bright purplish-garnet hued wines with greater weight and ripeness than wines from other areas within Zone 5. The low average yearly rainfall of 16.3 inches is less than neighboring regions.

TASTING NOTES:

Elegance, unctuousness and freshness in its purest form. A bomb of ripe white fruit, peach, apricot and spicy notes with a perfect balance of flavors. Mineral flavor with a wide and long aftertaste.