Family History: Francesc Capafons and Monserrat Ossó married in the late 1960s, merging their family names and historic vineyards. The Capafons family has made wine in Priorat for over five generations, and now produces balanced, expressive wines from the Mas de Masos vineyard in Priorat and the Masia Esplanes vineyard in Montsant. Señor Capafons considers his vineyards “natural laboratories” and strives to maintain equilibrium between his land and nature.
2008 Capafons-Osso Sirsell, D.O.Q. Priorat 750ml 6-Pack
“Sirsell,” the Catalan word for a grapevine tendril, is a smooth, single-vineyard wine produced from Capafons-Ossó’s Mas de l’Amoros, or the “Lovers’ Land”, estate. Though the five grape varieties grown in this vineyard (Garnacha, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cariñena, Merlot and Syrah) are characteristic of those cultivated in the D.O.Q. Priorat, the estate’s vast quantity of native, aromatic herbs that grow between their vines assist in providing this wine with a very unique taste profile. Deep purple in color with a ruby-red rim, this well-balanced wine has subtle aromas of milk chocolate, fresh berries, black licorice and Mediterranean forest floor. In the mouth, the wine is round and polished, with a boundless finish that invites one to take another taste. The 2008 Sirsell is a wine that can be enjoyed by the glass or when paired with most any kind of food, and is meant to drink now or age up to 15 years. The estate recommends drinking this wine slightly chilled, around 60-65°F.
Vintage: Winemaker Xavier Capafons has described the 2008 vintage as being one that was thankfully rainier than usual, since it followed the dry 2007 and 2006 vintages that were demarcated by long periods of drought. With cooler-than-normal temperatures, the grape maturation process was slower than usual which lead to a perfect phenolic maturation. Harvest began on September 16th with some of the family’s lower-lyingl, hill-side Garnacha and did not finish until the end of October when Xavier felt their high-elevation Cabernet vines were ready to harvest. Described over-all as a ‘unique year with an extended period of grape maturation,’ Xavier likens 2008 to the stunning 2013 vintage, which many have said will produce wines of inimitable quality.
Vineyards: Located at an elevation of 550 meters above sea level, the Mas de l’Amoros estate is located directly across from Capafons-Ossó’s famous Mas de Masos vineyard. The vines at this property are grown organically and were planted in the traditional head-pruned method, where they are trained very close to the ground in order to decrease production. With very tight spacing and no irrigation, the stressed vines ensure excellent grape quality with very high natural concentration year-to-year. Finca Mas de l’Amoros, Priorat, Spain
Fermentation and Aging: Hand-picked organic Garnacha, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cariñena, Merlot and Syrah clusters were selected, first in the field and again on a sorting table at the winery, before being de-stemmed and put separately into micro-stainless steel tanks for an alcoholic fermentation at 25ºC using native yeasts. After a long maceration of 60 days, an initial blend was made and the wine was then aged for 14 months in 100% fine-grain, used French oak barrels with a light-medium toast. Upon completion of barrel aging, a final blend was made and the finished wine was clarified via natural sedementation and lightly filtered before being bottled on June 17th, 2010.
Vineyards: Located at an elevation of 550 meters above sea level, the Mas de l’Amoros estate is located directly across from Capafons-Ossó’s famous Mas de Masos vineyard. The vines at this property are grown organically and were planted in the traditional head-pruned method, where they are trained very close to the ground in order to decrease production. With very tight spacing and no irrigation, the stressed vines ensure excellent grape quality with very high natural concentration year-to-year. Finca Mas de l’Amoros, Priorat, Spain
Fermentation and Aging: Hand-picked organic Garnacha, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cariñena, Merlot and Syrah clusters were selected, first in the field and again on a sorting table at the winery, before being de-stemmed and put separately into micro-stainless steel tanks for an alcoholic fermentation at 25ºC using native yeasts. After a long maceration of 60 days, an initial blend was made and the wine was then aged for 14 months in 100% fine-grain, used French oak barrels with a light-medium toast. Upon completion of barrel aging, a final blend was made and the finished wine was clarified via natural sedementation and lightly filtered before being bottled on June 17th, 2010.
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