Pla de Bages is a Spanish Denominación de Origen Protegida for Catalan wines, located in the province of Barcelona, and is one of the smallest DOPs in Spain, covering less than 500 hectares of which five are owned by the small winery Entrebosc. It is also one of the newest D.O.’s having acquired its official status in 1997.
Wine produced: 3,689 hectolitres.
Currently there are 17 wineries attached to the D.O. Pla de Bages.
History
Between 1850 and 1890, there were more than 27,000 hectares of vineyards in the Bages area. Today there are just over 500, of which five are owned by our small winery.
Located in the Grevalosa Valley, in the south of Bages, is Mas Pubill. An estate with more than half a century of history that houses the wine heritage of the old winegrowers of this valley.
An example of the legacy are the “Los Cubs” in catalàn or in Spanish “Cubas”, their winemaking tanks built between 1854 and 1876. The tanks, approximately 50 m3 each, total almost 200,000 liters. A volume that reminds us of the role of viticulture at that time.
With the arrival of phylloxera and industrialization, the estate, and its winemaking operations fell into oblivion. More than 100 years passed until Joan Forn, our father, inherited the estate in a state of ruin.
Years went by, when the father fixed the roof of Mas Pubill so that it wouldn’t fall down and Enric (the older brother) decided to study agriculture. He trained as an agricultural technician and they started planting 2ha in 2014, Picapoll and Cabernet Franc
They were making wines in a nearby winery until 2021, till they finally finished building their own. At that time, the younger brother had the need to be trained as a higher technician in viticulture and oenology to join the project fully. Since then, with his brother in charge of the vineyards and his sister in charge of wine tourism, they are gradually recovering the legacy of their ancestors.
Their philosophy of the project is based on regenerative agriculture, with low yields, organic and quality. You are talking about less than 4,000 kg ha, in vineyards planted on small terraces, between 550 and 650 meters above sea level. The grapes are harvested manually, in boxes of between 12 and 20 kg, cooled in a cold chamber and processed the next day at an optimal temperature to avoid oxidation.
They currently have five hectares, have recovered a vineyard planted in 1941 and only work with grapes from their own vineyards. They vinified around 6,000 bottles of all the references, with plans to exceed 10,000 in the next two years, weather permitting.
Little by little, theyare recovering the wine heritage of this small valley, the legacy left to us by their ancestors.
Grape varieties
Picapoll white grape variety
It is the quintessential autochthonous or traditional variety of Bages, which has reached their times thanks to a hard recovery task by a group of brave people from the region. It is a late variety, with a thick skin, which protects the grain during its long maturation. It gives wines of medium acidity, pleasant and voluminous. Automatically, it gives notes of fruit (pineapple and citrus), aromatic Mediterranean herbs (lavender) and light floral notes.
Cabernet Franc black grape variety
Cabernet Franc is originally from France, it gives structured wines with a lot of color. One of the characteristic aromas of this Bages variety is that of toffee. It is an early budding and maturing strain, which adapts very well to inland regions with harsh climates. This is why it is a variety that has been very well adapted to Bages for many years and that gives wines of great quality. The grapes are of a small to medium size, and not very compact.
Cabernet Franc wines are often used in blends with varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, but Entrebosc only produces monovarietal wines with Cabernet Franc, which increases the viticultural diversity of Catalonia.
They also have one old vineyard with the local grape variety sumoll which was planted in 1941.
Furthermore, they also have Mandó, a black variety, native to Bages, recently recovered. It has thin skin, a lot of freshness and little astringency. Good acidity and earthy and violet aromas. This is their young red wine.
Finally, they also have planted Garnacha and merlot, but no wine made yet of these grape varieties.