Bodegas Vega de Tera
We would love to receive you, but if possible not in September. In September we harvest and we work from eight at night to eight in the morning. If you must, we will make it work, but if you can come later that would be better.
I answered, no problem.
By the way, we have made some changes to our label. Please let us know what you think of it. Of importance is the wolf to us. It's a symbol of our home, and our region Sitrama. The Iberian wolf is endangered, but it controls the balance of life in our region and the mountains. The mountains are a very important part of our terroir.
What I heard on the call was a winery evolving and becoming more self aware. Vega de Tera has always made excellent value bottlings of Castilla y Leon varieties. They have been certified organic since their beginning. But here was a conversation about taking their ecological consciouness and understanding the bigger forces that effect it, all leading to a greater understanding of their specific place, Sitrama, in the bigger world.
The Montes de Leon mountains. The Iberian wolf. The balance and respect that are needed to allow for people and their place in the land. It was an expansion of their thinking on organics, and an understanding of their true identity. This was no longer a Castilla y Leon winery, it was a Sitrama winery. It was wonderful to hear and to reflect on.
What do you think of the label they asked again?
I love it, I replied. The mountain's edge on the top of the label. The Iberian wolf and of course the sub-region, Sitrama. A label is meant to attempt to translate the story of a wine. The place. The producer. The wine and its style. And the ethos that surrounds all of that. I especially like when the place is named. For me, wine starts with geography.
How are the vines I asked? How was the 2020 vintage- especially in all that was 2020?
A shrug, then a smile...Despite last year, 2020 may be one of our best vintages ever. It was so balanced and even. And you know we made a change with the rosado. It's still from Prieto Picudo, but we decided to feature its acidity and freshness because of the iron in the soils, and we only macerated it for a couple of hours. It won't be as rich as you have known it to be from before- it will be lighter, fresher, but it is delicious.
More smiles. Even zoom can translate the smiles.
You can always tell when a winemaker is very happy with their work. They speak less and smile more genuinely.
There's a lot of rosado available from Spain. Much of it is very affordable- some of it is down right cheap. I have found tha the best value rosados are not simply decent wines with very good prices, they are wines that have been hand crafted and embody their specific place and culture. They tell a story that transports you and allows for reflection. That they also carry very good prices is a benefit.
Vega de Tera's Rosado is one of those wines.
