L’Olivera presents a wine to commemorate its 50th anniversary, a blend of Macabeos from different preparations and different vintages that summarises its history
The celebration of L’Olivera’s 50 years cannot be fully understood without appreciating what we do best: wine. For this reason, this special anniversary comes accompanied by a commemorative wine. This 50-year-old-wine is a single-varietal Macabeo that encapsulates L’Olivera knowledge in the production of unique wines with this variety that, from the very beginning, has given us an identity. A single-varietal Macabeo that is, in reality, a blend of different Macabeos, with different elaborations and also, from different vintages, with the aim of collecting in the wine, drops of history from these 50 years.
It is, in itself, a summary of hoy we have worked on the Macabeo from the beginning to the present. For this reason, the blend includes a portion (27%) of Macabeo fermented and aged in barrels, which evokes tradition; 40% of Macabeo that has been aged with new materials that we have been experimenting wiht in recent years, such as clay; 30% Macabeos breeze, a traditional method with which we are also currently experimenting and, finally, 3% Macabeos from different vintages (1993, 2000, 2009 and 2015).
A handmade design for a very limited edition
Experimentation and tradition. A unique combination within a bottle of wine that is part of a very limited edition on only 1000 bottles and 50 magnums. At the winery we have tried to make each bottle a small work of art, unique and delicate. For this reason, the wine has a special label, the work of Catalan designer Claret Serrahima, one of L’Olivera’s collaborators since its inception. He and his daughter, Ariadna Serrahima, have devised a label that also links wine with craftsmanship, since it is printed using the “Super Veloz” typeface, created in 1942, and has been printed, one by one, on a Minerva Heidelberg mechanical printing press. A meticulous work that has been carried out at the L’Automàtica printing press in Barcelona, on of the few that still remain in Catalonia capable of this type of printing, and that makes each label unique.
The Vinseum hosts the presentation ceremony of the 50-year commemorative wine.
This new wine from L’Olivera was presented, on Thursday May 16, at the Vinseum, el Museu de les Cultures del Vi de Catalunya, in Vilafranca del Penedès. The event featured a presentation by the museum’s director, Xavi Fornós, who highlighted the friendship that has existed for years between the museum and L’Olivera, which is one of the Honorary Friends of the Vinseum. For his part, the vice president and head of production at L’Olivera, Pau Moragas, emphasised the connections that L’Olivera has woven throughout these 50 years and that have made possible the consolidation of a social agricultural project “from the margins”. The director of L’Olivera, Carles de Ahumada, also highlighted the importance of the Macabeo in the creation of L’Olivera’s identity, recalling that “we were the first winery in DO Costers del Segre to work the Macabeo, especially in single-varietal wines”.
The presentation event also featured an appearance by the label’s deigner, Claret Serrahima, a collaborator of L’Olivera since its inception. He and his daughter, Ariadna Serrahima, explained how this new label was made, in a very artisanal way, and reviewed the work that Serrahima has created for L’Olivera throuhout the years. “I am very happy that the labels are able to reflect all the great work that has gone into the project”, said Serrahima.
The winery’s winemaker, Clara Griera, closed the event, describing a wine that she classified as “an experiment, a wine that is born from the marinade, a unique landscape and the blend of historic Macabeo vintages”. “It is dynamic, as we are. It is evolutionary; it is a time for reflection, a turning point, as are the 50 years of L’Olivera”, said Griera, who also thanked the winemaker Enric Soler for his support in the production of this wine.
The event ended with a tasting of this new wine among all attendees. The president of L’Olivera, Dolors Llonch, presented a Magnum bottle of the 50-year-old wine to the Vinseum, accompanied by an original reproduction of the label that has been hand-painted by Claret Serrahima himself.
