Empordaguia

Perhaps it’s the location of the vineyard in the Gavarres range, perhaps it’s because of distinct and select strains of grapes, perhaps it’s because of the care taken in making this wine, or probably kit’s because of all of these that the wines of this new winery are excellent and certainly worth a try.

 Wines are artistic creations made from many elements. Philippe Dambois (Liege, 1943) is well aware of this. Together with co-director Jose Manuel Maria he is in charge of the new winery of Blau Nou, located in the heart of the Gavarres. Philippe learnt about wines in France but developed his expertise here. First he created the winery “Clos d’Agon” in Calonge, which had achieved an excellent international reputation by the time he sold it to Swiss investors. Now he has taken his art to Blau Nou. “A new project is always interesting,” he explains. “It’s a challenge to start at zero; you can’t appreciate the results until after a few years.” He had the advantage of having already created some good wines; he knew where to go. At the start of this assignment, the first thing he undertook was to thoroughly study the ground and climate. “It’s important to watch the rain fall on the terrain, to see from where it comes, and how much falls over the years…all this is part of the wine.”

The winery is in the Gavarres range, a few Kilometres from the little village of Sant Marti Vell. The vineyards total 13 hectares, surrounded by 30.000 hectares of woods, which keep them secluded from other crops. They lie at the foot of an ancient volcano; the ground is siliceous and calcareous, and the stony subsoil is beneficial to drainage. To avoid spoiling the harmony of the environment, the winery was constructed entirely underground. Only the glass covered light shafts indicate that there is life under the green hill crowned by a monumental statue by Jorge Castillo.

 The first wines came onto the market in 2008, called Eccoci (here we are) and Eccomi (here I am), and were immediately acclaimed. In 2010 they won their first gold medal. The subtle details Philippe has created make these wines very special. “Here it is usual to plant 3500 vines per hectare. We plant 5000, because proximity forces the plant to produce grapes of better quality. We also grow them in espalier up to 2.30 metres high. In this way, we get 2 sq.m. leaf area that helps 1 Kilo of grapes to ripen.” These are not the only differences. The strains used are also different: Viognier, Roussanne, and Petit Manseng for Eccoci white, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Marselan for Eccoci Premium red, and Marselan (a crossing of Cabernet Sauvignon and Garnacha) for the Eccomi red crianza Super Premium. All grapes are picked by hand with outmost care. Bunches destined for white wine are taken whole to a pneumatic press that works with nitrogen (to avoid oxidation). They are softly pressed and then taken to a vat for racking and then slow fermentation at 16°C for two or three weeks. For red wine, each variety is made separately. Bunches are completely stemmed; the grapes are softly pressed and then brought into the top part of a double vat. Depending on the variety and the type of wine to be made, fermentation starts (7 to 10 days) followed by maceration in the same vat for 15 to 30 days to get the maximum colour, aroma, and fine tannins. The wine then drips by gravity into the bottom part of the double vat.

 As a result of all this are exclusive wines from a winery that proudly boasts of being the firs in Spain with a Zero CO2 seal, a certificate that guarantees that Bodega Blau has calculated and compensated for all greenhouse gas emissions generated by its activity. This is an example to follow.