Free shipping in Spain for orders over 80€
0
  • No products in the cart.
Total:0,00€
Marta Pujadó

31 Oct Grau i Grau: five generations of viticulture

Posted at 18:12h in Winemakers by
0 Likes

“What I remember the most about my grandfather are harvesting days, with him and other farmers from town”, says Marta Pujadó, export manager of Celler Grau i Grau, while recalling her childhood and that of her cousin’s, Jordi Casanovas, the winery’s oenologist. Year after year, they have kept and renewed the family’s tradition of making quality wine with a distinct aroma and flavour, reminiscent of the forest and the clay soil where their vines grow.

The Roman numeral “V” decorates several Grau i Grau labels. Marta tells us that it is because they are the fifth generation of her family that have been making wine. They first started at the end of the 19th century, but it was her grandfather, Jaume Grau i Grau, who in 1966 built the current winery, giving the brand its name. Marta feels that continuing with the tradition is a great responsibility because “it has been the life of the family for all these generations”. She also adds that she is passionate about the world of wine: “it is very interesting and wide, there is no end to it”.
Jordi Casanovas and Marta Pujadó at the winery
Jordi Casanovas and Marta Pujadó at the winery. (source Instagram)
Marta looks towards the future without forgetting what makes her winery unique: a family structure and a deep respect for the environment. “We have no intention of becoming a large company, our philosophy is to stay true to ourselves. Keeping things small enables us to make the quality of our wines our true priority” she says.
Despite the fact that the first certified organic vintage did not hit the market until 2017, Grau i Grau has always taken care of its plantations without using chemicals or pesticides. “We wanted to be labeled as ecological because the market asks for it. But this way of working is our philosophy, what we want to do and what we have always done”, says the winemaker.
As for the harvest, Marta explains that little has changed since her grandfather’s time. Although some technology has been introduced, it is still done mostly by hand. “We collect part of the production with machinery, depending on the extension of land, but because the vines are next to the winery, we have no oxidation problems” she tells us.

Forest wines

The Grau i Grau winery is located in the municipality of Maians and is part of the Pla de Bages Protected Designation of Origin (PDO). Marta works in the export department, so she is frequently faced with the challenge of offering prospective clients a wine that comes from a lesser-known designation than others in Catalonia. “You have to explain the winery, but also the area and the characteristics of the wines that are made here so that our product is understood. The peculiarities, the altitude, the forest environment, the autochthonous varieties… the area is not well known, although it is becoming more and more so” Pujadó tells us.

The vineyards are surrounded by forest
The vineyards are surrounded by forest. (source Instagram)
“We are surrounded by pines, oaks and holm oaks. This marks the difference of Pla de Bages wines, which to the nose and in the mouth are reminiscent of the forest” she explains. The altitude (Grau i Grau is at 500 meters above sea level) and the strong changes in temperature between day and night also affect the vineyards. They yield an excellent fruit with which to make quality wine, with a level of acidity that allows it to last well over time.

Picapoll, star variety

One of the varieties that stands out in the Grau i Grau vineyards is the Picapoll, a type of grape that is only grown in Pla de Bages. “There is very little quantity, we always collect it by hand, and we take extra care of it”, she says affectionately, while she points out that the white monovarietal Picapoll Cent.Kat is one of their most outstanding wines.

Picapoll Cent.Kat and picapoll grapes
Picapoll Cent.Kat and picapoll grapes. (source Instagram)
See products
See wine tasting calendar

Our Grau i Grau profile

  • Hectares: 20 Ha
  • Bottles per year: about 100,000
  • Owners: Family winery run by the fifth generation, Marta Pujadó and Jordi Casanovas
  • Highlights: The Cent.Kat monovarietal white, made 100% with Picapoll grape, a variety is only planted in the DO Pla de Bages. A fresh, fruity wine with a lot of personality. The Sensvs, made with Cabernet Franc and Syrah grapes, is another of the winery’s must-tries. This wine perfectly meets the characteristics of Pla de Bages wines.
  • Varieties: Picapoll (native to Bages), Macabeu Chardonnay, White Sauvignon, Ull de Llebre, Cabernet Franc, Syra, Merlot, Garnatxa and Sumoll.
  • Elaboration: The winery works exclusively with its own grapes. With organic certification since 2017, they do not use pesticides or chemicals, neither in the vineyard, nor in the winery.
  • Label: They always work with two local designers, that have recently renewed the labels of their bottles.
  • Other activities: Like so many other wineries, Grau i Grau has opened up to the world of wine tourism with visits to its facilities. Their approach is quite original with an activity called the “Big Escape”. Inspired by the now popular escape-rooms, the visitor has to solve an enigma that set before him at the start of the visit.
No Comments

Post A Comment