Ca'n Verdura 'Negre' Binissalem-Mallorca DO 2023

In an old converted auto garage in the center of Binissalem, Mallorca, Tomeu Llabrés crafts small batch wines that are playfully fierce representations of the unique terroir of the island. Tomeu studied oenology in Tarragona and gained valuable experience in Priorat and at larger winemaking houses back home in Mallorca, but his winemaking roots go back over six generations, as his family cultivated mixed agriculture vineyards (where grapes mingle with other crops like almond, olive, and apricot trees - a type of polyculture traditional to the region). Today he practices low impact viticulture, utilizing polyculture, cover cropping, and encouraging maximum biodiversity in the old vineyards he works with, while steadfastly avoiding chemical treatments. The Levante winds are a key to this, aerating and cooling the vineyards as they blow across Mallorca from northeast to southwest. Ca’n Verdura focuses on old vine plots of traditional varietals, such as the 51% montenegro grape featured in this ‘Negre’ cuvée. All grapes are hand harvested and fermented with native yeasts in stainless steel tank, and the montenegro is augmented by old-vine international varietals including merlot (24%), syrah (20%), monastrell (4%), and a tiny amount of the native callet grape. About one third of the wine is aged for five months in large 500L old French oak barrels, while the rest remains in stainless steel for the same amount of time. Medium bodied, fresh and fragrant, this bursts with spicy, woodsy notes of cedar, concentrated layers of wild red berries, fresh herbs, and a savory, iron-rich undertone (thanks to the red clay “call vermell” soils of Binissalem). Energetic acidity melds with satisfying texture for a food friendly, perfectly-crushable-yet-still-complex introduction to Mallorcan wine. Organically grown, low-intervention/natural wine, vegan.