PAPA LUNA

Varietals: Garnacha 70%, Syrah 25%, Monastrell/Mazuelo5%
Vintage: 2006
Winemaker: Norrel Robertson
D.O.: Calatayud
Total Production: 2,000 cases (9lt cases)

TASTING NOTES
Color: Deep purple with crimson rim
Nose: Raspberry and cherry aromas punctuated by herbs and vanilla
Palate: Full bodied fruit with fine tannins and crisp acidity.
Finish: Long, smoky vanilla

VITICULTURE/VINIFICATION
Papa Luna begins as bush vine grapes in the slate studded Jiloca valley at 2,600 feet above sea level. The wild mountain herbs amongst the vineyards give rise to the distinctive varietal aromas and garrigue character in the wine. The Syrah was destemmed but not crushed to give a high proportion of whole berry fruit. This in turn was cold soaked until a wild fermentation ensued after which the must was inoculated with a wild Rhone yeast strain. Fermentation proceed at 28 celsius and the wine was pressed off using only free run juice. Malo took place in tank and 50% in new and used French and American oak. The meticulously sourced 70-100 year old bush vine Garnacha was destemmed, crushed and inoculated with several Rhone yeasts. Temperature controlled fermentation commenced and lasted 7 days with pumpovers and delistage for color and tannin extraction followed by a short maceration. The free run wine underwent malo in tank. 35% of the Garnacha was added to the skins of the Syrah after fermentation and a “doble pasta” was carried out to add more color and concentration. Similary one tank of Garnacha was macerated post fermentation for extract and complexity. Some of the extremely old parcels of Garnacha are interplanted with Mazuelo
and Monastrell and as such these grapes were co-fermented.


TECHNICAL DATA
pH: 3.55
TA: 6.5 g/l
ALC: 14.0%
RS: 1.9g/l
Malolactic: Yes
Tannin: 0.1g/l vr supra tannin


WINEMAKER: Norrel Robertson, MW
Norrel spent the past five years in Calatayud searching out individual blocks of fruit in order to produce a wine of massive intensity. Calatayud offers one of the most unique areas in Spain for old vine Grenache and is set to follow Priorat as a cutting edge region for Grenache based wines and world class winemaking. 2006 is the third vintage of this predominately Grenache/Syrah blend. The Grenache was carefully sourced from only the highest elevation slate vineyards around the villages of Acered and Alarba. Yield from the 70-100 year old bush vines did not exceed 20 hl/acre. The Syrah was hand harvested from 25 year old vines on two selected parcels. Norrel feels that the fruit from these sites was excellent and delivers wonderful minerality and herbal undertones within this fruit forward offering.

Papa Luna, Pedro Martinez de Luna, born near the Calatayud vineyards that supply this wine served as the last
Pope to reign in Avignon during the dual Papacy of the15th century. The wine is made in homage to this great
local character and icon.


Press
Robert Parker’s The Wine Advocate - 90 Points. Issue # 175, Feb 2008