{"id":6691,"date":"2019-05-14T14:57:52","date_gmt":"2019-05-14T14:57:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cbws.eu\/archive\/?page_id=6691"},"modified":"2019-05-14T14:57:52","modified_gmt":"2019-05-14T14:57:52","slug":"do-somontano-6th-10th-may-2019","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/www.cbws.eu\/archive\/do-somontano-6th-10th-may-2019\/","title":{"rendered":"DO Somontano 6th – 10th May 2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

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On 6th May 34 members of the Society boarded the coach for the Society’s annual wine trip, this year to DO Somontano, last visited by the Society in 2007.\u00a0 Somontano is set in the foothills of the Pyrenees and the Sierra de Guara. Founded in 1984 the DO is centred in the town of Barbastro in the<\/span><\/p>\n

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Barbastro<\/p><\/div>\n

Province of Huesca and the group stayed in the hotel Gran Cuidad de Barbastro for the duration of the visit. Vineyards in this region lie at a height of between 350 and 1,000 metres above sea level.\u00a0 The vines here enjoy a dark sandy-clay soil, particularly high in lime content and rich in alluvial matter.\u00a0The soil is not especially fertile, but it has good drainage which facilitates the deep penetration of roots so they can absorb more moisture and nutrients.\u00a0The region’s climate is continental, with the Pyrenees mountains buffering exposure to the cold northern winds.\u00a0Nonetheless, winter freezes are common, as are extremely high temperatures in the summer. On a daily basis, temperatures also fluctuate significantly between day and night.\u00a0Average rainfall is 500 mm.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Lunch at Care<\/p><\/div>\n

Before arriving in Barbastro, our journey to the region included a lunch stop at one of the favourite bodegas of the Society, Bodegas A\u00f1adas in Cari\u00f1ena, famous for its Care wines. \u00a0Here we enjoyed wines from the bodega together with a menu de degustaci\u00f3n.\u00a0 Despite not doing a tour of the bodega, we nevertheless bought some of the Care wines to the tune of 880\u20ac.\u00a0 We arrived at our hotel at 18,30 and at 20.00 assembled in the Seville suite for tapas and drinks.<\/span><\/p>\n

The following morning our visit commenced with a visit to the Consejo Regulador de DO Somontano. The Consejo controls every aspect of wine production in Somontano.\u00a0 \u00a0Here we were shown a video and given a talk about Somontano, setting the scene for our visits to four of the bodegas of the region.\u00a0 \u00a0We then went and visited, probably the best known of the medieval villages with which the region abounds; Alqu\u00e9zar.\u00a0 \u00a0It is said to be amongst the most beautiful and picturesque villages in Spain which as barely changed over the centuries.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Alqu\u00e9zar<\/p><\/div>\n

The first bodega which we visited was that of Bodegas Alodia, a small family run business producing a mere 30,000 bottles per annum.\u00a0 One of the\"\"<\/a> smallest bodegas in Somontano, with 17 hectares of their own vineyards they produced their first wine in 2005.\u00a0 \u00a0It <\/span>was born with the idea of \u200b\u200brecovering the unique grape varieties of Somontano which almost disappeared and the production of unique wines.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>It is the only DO Somontano winery that produces \"\"<\/a>wines from the three local varieties: Parraleta, Moristel and Alca\u00f1\u00f3n. In the case of this last white grape, it has contributed to its recovery and Alodia Alca\u00f1\u00f3n’s monovarietal is the only one that is commercialized of this grape in the world.\u00a0 We tasted Alca\u00f1\u00f3n 2018 (8.60\u20ac), Moristel 2015 (9.25\u20ac), Paraleta 2015 (10.70\u20ac) and Cruz de Los 2015 (24.00\u20ac).\u00a0 \u00a0 We also tasted a Bodegas Alodia san sulfitos (6.80\u20ac) a blend of Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon.\u00a0 \u00a0After our tour and tasting we enjoyed a lunch at the bodega prepared by the family.\u00a0 \u00a0Many members also visited the nearby cheese factory and made purchases.<\/span>\u00a0 \u00a0Our spend at this bodega was\u00a0 654\u20ac.<\/span><\/p>\n

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On our third day, we were scheduled to visit two bodegas.\u00a0 \u00a0The first was Vi\u00f1as del Vero which owes its name to a river in the Somontano region, the Vero,\u00a0 The winery\u00a0 was established at the end of 1986 with the acquisition of \"\"<\/a>550 hectares of land in Barbastro and other nearby towns. In 1987 the land with vineyards of the traditional varieties of the region (Tempranillo, Moristel, Garnacha and Macabeo) began to be replanted, along with others of different origins (Chardonnay, Gew\u00fcrztraminer, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Pinot Noir).\u00a0 The first wines of the winery appeared on the market in the spring of 1990.\u00a0 <\/span>In 1987, the company acquired the farm “San Marcos” for the construction of the new winery, which opened in July 1993. In it, the whole process of developing the Vi\u00f1as del Vero, from the selection of the vintage until aging and bottling was carried \"\"<\/a>out.\u00a0 <\/span>In 2008, Vi\u00f1as del Vero became part of the Gonz\u00e1lez Byass Family of Wines.\u00a0 <\/span>Currently, Vi\u00f1as de Vero is the first winery of the Somontano appellation for its volume and quality of production.\u00a0<\/span>The company has one of the largest vineyard areas in Spain, and is one of the leading wineries both for its technology and for the style of its wines. We tasted Gew\u00fcrztraminer (7.20\u20ac), Clarion, a blend of Gew\u00fcrztraminer and Chardonnay (11.48\u20ac), Secastilla, a Garnacha (19.50\u20ac) and Blecua also Garnacha (51.00\u20ac). These wine prices were at a 25% discount offered to us by the bodega.\u00a0 Our total spend here was 1800\u20ac.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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Sommos<\/p><\/div>\n

\"\"<\/a>The second Bodega we visited was Sommos formerly Bodega Irius. Bodega Sommos is one of the most modern and innovative wineries in Spain.\u00a0Opening in 2008 this ultra-modern building was constructed by Spanish architect Jesus Marino Pascual.\u00a0 \u00a0It is buried up to 27 meters underground to maintain the natural conditions for the elaboration of the wines and has been designed to be able to use gravity for the movement of grapes, musts and wine, in this way avoiding the damage caused by the\"\"<\/a> traditional use of pumps.\u00a0 \u00a0The vineyards cover 355 hectares and the harvesting of the grapes is done at night to avoid the high temperatures of the day and t<\/span>he transport of the grape is carried out in stainless steel trailers with airtight lid, avoiding environmental contamination and temperature changes.\u00a0 \u00a0The wine <\/span>\u00a0is made in <\/span>French oak vats of 16,000 litres<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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Tasting Room<\/p><\/div>\n

and in <\/span>concrete tanks\u00a0 from <\/span>8000 litres <\/span>before starting aging in\u00a0<\/span>new French Premium oak barrels. The whole process is automated, the only human intervention coming from people seated at control consoles.\u00a0 The tasting was conducted in a splendid professional tasting room.\u00a0 All white with individual positions each with its own sink, it raised wine tasting to a different level.\u00a0 <\/span>The Wines we tasted were; SOMMOS Varietales Blanco.(8.50\u20ac), SOMMOS Colecci\u00f3n Gew\u00fcrztraminer (9.90\u20ac), Alquez SOMMOS Garnacha (8.90), SOMMOS Colecci\u00f3n Merlot (17.50\u20ac) and SOMMOS Premium (32.00\u20ac).\u00a0 \u00a0After the tour and tasting we enjoyed an excellent lunch in their delightful dining room with spectacular views of the vineyards.\u00a0 \u00a0Out total spend at the bodega was 961\u20ac.<\/span><\/p>\n

Our final full day in Somontano started with a visit the the Cathedral in <\/span>Barbastro (<\/span>Catedral de Santa Mar\u00eda de la Asunci\u00f3n<\/span>) which is a Roman Catholic<\/span> cathedral.\u00a0 A church at the site was first erected on 5 May 1101, at the site of a mosque by the Saint Bishop Poncio<\/span>.\u00a0 \u00a0A new church was rebuilt in the 16th century. The Bell tower was unusually built separate to the cathedral.\u00a0 The present church was erected between 1517 and 1533 \u00a0and was declared a national monument in 1931. Of interest are the thin columns ending in floral and decorated capitals. The main retablo<\/span>\u00a0has scenes dedicated to the\u00a0<\/span><\/span>Assumption of the Virgin<\/span>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/span>Passion of Christ with a base of alabaster sculpted in a plateresque style. The superior part was carved in wood during 1600 to 1602.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n