The story behind Caligo Esssència is the result of
a coincidence. It started with a plan: Pere (the
oenologist and winemaker) planted Chardonnay vines and when the time was
right went to harvest them to
start the winemaking process. On arrival at the vineyard, he realized that the
grapes weren’t as healthy as they should be; they were
not in the best of conditions for winemaking so, disappointed, Pere left them
in the state he found them on the vine.
Later, after looking at a book,
and seeing some pictures of grapes
affected by noble rot or botrytis cinerea Pere had
an idea. He began to realise that his unhealthy grapes might not be such a bad
thing after all. Botrytis forms due to a fungus causing two different
types of infections Gray Rot and
Noble Rot. Pere’s grapes had noble rot.
Noble rot only develops with wet or damp weather
conditions, typically with the
early morning mist followed by the heat of the sun. The fungus
develops only in these very specific conditions of humidity and
sunlight. The most immediate
effect of botrytis is an increase in the concentration of sugar
in the grapes, this is because the
fungus survives in
the water of grapes which feeds it. It also provides a higher concentration of acids and the resulting wine become very glyceric.
Wines made from noble rot grapes are
predominantly from
Sauternes (France) and Tokaji (Hungary), however in Catalonia
(Spain) we also have these wines. They are found in Pontons, at the Mas Fonoll vineyard. Pere
was no longer disappointed, he had a crop of noble rotted chardonnay perfect
for making dessert wine, and so Caligo Essència was born.
Making dessert wine is a game of
patience. The grapes are left on the vine right through autumn, the vines drop
their leaves and the grapes begin to decline. Exact climatic conditions are
needed to produce noble rot and importantly colder weather is needed to
preserve and condense the flavours and aromas, patience is a must. Harvest must
be at just the right time and the winemaking process can finally begin. Now,
Pere and Toni make there are 3 variants of Caligo wine: Caligo, Caligo Essencia
and Petit Caligo.
In 2003 they made the first test of
Caligo, producing only 100 litres.
This test proved successful
and in 2005 they had
the first 1,000 bottles
on the market. They currently have
20 hectares of vines
reserved for the production of wine
by grapes affected by this rot. Each year, except 2011 as it was extremely dry, they have
had noble rot conditions.
The Caligo Essència is a mist wine with
a limited production due to the low productivity
of the vineyard (350 l / Ha). The harvest is
manual and must be done with great care, the grapes are then moved to the cellar
for pressing, a vertical press is used. A six month fermentation
process then begins at a low temperature, between 13 and 18 °
C. The wine is then transferred to 400 litre French oak barrels
for ageing.
In appearance it is a clear and bright wine,
with an intense gold colour. On swirling the legs are clearly visible legs showing us
that it is a glyceric wine.
On the nose, the aromas are clean, with a
medium+ intensity. Dry fruit aromas stand out, especially fig, apricot, peach, quince
jelly, hints of orange peel and fresh spices. The aromas are layered with
honey.
On the palate it has an unctuous sweetness, with medium acidity and medium+ body. The fruit flavours are well defined,
especially cooked fruits (peach, apricot) and quince jelly. It also has citrusy
flavours with hints of honey.
It is definitely a great and
original wine, if you have the chance
you should try it, don’t waste
the opportunity! It goes well with nuts, but it is also excellent
to accompany foie gras and blue cheeses.
Molt content de trobar apassionats del vi i més encara quan estant al costat de casa (Penedès).
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