La Encina - Alt Vinalopó
Bodega La Encina, located on the border of the provinces of Alicante and Albacete, is one of the first important wineries in the Valencian country to be awarded the ecological certification. More of that, the vines are cultivated entirely according to the recommendations of biodynamics and the lunar calendar. Here the terroir lies on a plateau at 680m which receives an influence from the Mediterranean. It is hot in summer and cold in winter, an ideal climate for the vines, which are planted in sandy-clay soil.
Jose Maria is over 80 years old, let's stop there, it's already disrespectful to him, so much freshness emanates from the master of the place. As a child, José Maria helped his father, who made wine that can be considered natural, and in 2007 he started making wine under the name of La Encina. The vines have been certified ecological since 2001, and biodynamics has been applied since 2013. In 2018, Carlos the nephew of José Maria joined the vineyard and launched his own line of wines, Llunavins, in the purest spirit of the house.
A visit in the vineyards confirms a viticulture that respects living things, a sine qua non condition for obtaining wines that can withstand the absence of added sulphites. In winter the vegetation is maintained to protect the roots from frost and provide a habitat for local fauna, in summer it is reduced to avoid water competition with the vines. The dry climate avoids any synthetic chemical inputs, the only inputs are organic with the spreading of six tonnes of manure per hectare every three years.
The vines grown are autochthonous and thousands of years old, Monestrell (Moudrève de Sagunt), Grenache and red and white Forcallat which, when grown without irrigation, produce between 1.5 and 2.5 kg per vine. The wine is aged on site with indigenous yeasts, without additives, in three to six 1000-litre vats per day during the hand-picked harvest. La Encina produces young and long-keeping wines in white, red, rosé and orange, vermouth and ancestral, single-variety wines as blends.
Vineyard certified ecological by the CAECV (Ecological Agriculture Committee of the Valencian Community) number 1769 E and the Agricultural Council of Castilla-La Mancha number 190 P.
Forcallat
Red wine Forcallat tinta 100%
Alcohol content: 12,5% Vol.
The plot is located at 650 metres above sea level in the municipality of Almansa, at the crossroads of the provinces of Valencia, Alicante and Castilla y León. The hundred-year-old (pre phylloxera) Forcallat tinta vine, a native grappe from the region but very uncommon, is planted on limestone soil and has always been grown biodynamically.
The harvest: the grapes were cut by hand and transported in boxes of 15/20kg.
The winemaking: 2/3 days of maceration, pressing without the stalks, fermentation with indigenous yeasts. Aging in stainless steel barrels, neither filtered nor clarified.
The wine maker's notes: recommended to accompany roasts, strong stews, cured cheeses and Mediterranean rice dishes.
Recommended consumption temperature: 16-18°C