Raventos i Blanc – L’Hereu 2011

L’ Hereu is our “premier”, the finest symbol of how we like to work. Complexity in varieties and soils, with Macabeu as the structural base.

Estate:

The soil on the estate is calcareous and dates from the oldest period of the Penedès valley, some 16 million years ago, when it was still covered by the Mediterranean. The River Anoia has carved out its course, this being the only area of the Penedès region where these soils replete with tropical marine fossils have surfaced.

The vineyards of la Plana, facing north-north-east. Deep calcareous soils of fluvial and lacustrine origin from the Quaternary period, with a clay-rich loamy texture. Very fresh plots where the vines have everything they need to progress well throughout the growing cycle, allowing the grapes to reach the optimal level of ripeness and maintain their acidity through to the harvest. Growth vigour is controlled by spontaneous plant cover. We planted espalier-trained Xarel·lo vines in 1986 and espalier-trainedMacabeo vines in 1990 and 2000, which define the personality of Hereu.

El Viader is a plot with a south-easterly orientation. Deep calcareous soils formed in the Quaternary period, with a sand-rich loamy texture over molasse, low in organic matter. Goblet-trained Parellada vines, planted in 1971, give the wine freshness and elegance.

Vines from other grape-growers Since 1996, when we were forced to sell part of our estate, we started using the selected plots of other grape-growers. These plots lie along Conca del riu Anoia, in the eastern part of the Penedès region. The soil is calcareous, of fluvial and lacustrine origin from the Quaternary period, with varying textures. These vines are over 40 years old with a balance of the traditional varieties:Macabeu, Xarel·lo and Parellada.

Harverest 2011:

The agricultural year began with a warm autumn and the cold did not arrive until December. As soon as the leaves started to fall
we started pruning. A mild winter brought on early shoots beginning on 15th March (ten days earlier than in 2010) with xarel·lo
and chardonnay. This put us ahead of cycle throughout the entire year.

The spring was wet, with 267 l/m2 of rainfall between March and June. The rain helped to give us a good water reserve in the soil
but it also created optimal conditions for the development of fungal diseases such as mildew, which we had to prevent through
careful work in the vineyard.

Summer started out cool and dry, but 20 l/m2 of rainfall on 30th July gave rise to botrytis in the chardonnay, and we had to carefully select many grapes during harvest. August and September were two very warm (maximum temperatures of over 35 ºC)
and dry months (10 l/m2 of rainfall) which stopped the botrytis attack. This weather gave rise to very fast ripening. We began the
harvest on 10th August with the chardonnay. It was a very healthy and high-quality harvest and by choosing well our harvest date,
we avoided overripening, thus maintaining a very good balance in our wines and cavas.

We had little rainfall during the year with 491 l/m2 (the average rainfall in the past ten years has been 526 l/m2), although it was
well spread out over the vegetative cycle and the average temperature was 15 ºC, the same as the average over the past ten years.

45% Macabeu harvested on 22nd of August.
35% Xarel.lo harvested from 29th of August.
20% Parellada harvested from 12th of September.

Vinification:

Eco-friendly viticulture in the transformation to Biodynamic agriculture. We leave spontaneous plant coverage between the rows of vines to give added biodiversity, fertility and life to the soil. We apply composted manure in the winter. Short pruning on the bush, leaving an average of 12 buds per vine. Preventive work in spring involving close observation and green pruning to get rid of suckers, adult leaves and shoots that use up energy and create a damp microclimate. We ensure the grapes are not exposed to sunlight to prevent the skins from burning. Minimal use, if necessary, of natural plant protection products, using sulphur salts to prevent oidium and copper salts against mildew. The Lobesia botrana pest is controlled using sexual confusion techniques. Cluster sampling and ripeness controls before harvesting.Manual harvesting with small trailers.

Shared by Susana Portabella