Ribera del Duero, Spain
César Fernández Díaz
César’s wines are from Ribera del Duero, a region with manicured vineyards from which renowned wines, such as Vega Sicilia, are produced. However, his approach is radically different. He works with old untrellised bush vines from vineyard plots that contain several grape varieties to create ‘field blend’ wines that truly embody the concept of terroir and identity of the place they come from. His wines strive for four characteristics: minerality, acidity, elegance and austerity.
Because these wines do not comply with the Ribera del Duero appellation requirements regarding varieties and aging, they are ‘declassified’ as Vinos de la Tierra. The vines are planted on a variety of soils including loam, silt, limestone and clay at 850-900 m. The region has a continental climate yielding wines with good colour and freshness. We are delighted to work with César and be the first to have his wines in Canada.
Espantaburros Clarete
Clarete, or what the English originally called claret and French called clairet is a rose-tinted wine, deeper than typical rosés. Espantaburros Clarete is made from around 70% black (mostly Tempranillo with some Grenache and Bobal) and 30% white (Albillo Mayor) grapes from 70–75-year-old organically farmed vines on calcareous clay soils.
Crushed grapes are macerated for 12-36 hours before being drained off the skins and fermented with natural yeasts. The wine is matured in used French oak barrels for around 12 months. It is bottled without filtration, clarification or stabilization.
