Familia Torres initiates new winegrowing project in Spain

Spanish family owned winery Familia Torres has initiated a new stage in a winegrowing project located in Alts d’Ancosa in the Penedès.

Under this project, the winery will be planting historic local variety Forcada, which is a variety of white grape.

Familia Torres fifth-generation family member and the general manager Miguel Torres Maczassek said: “By planting new vines in Les Escostes, we want to restore an exceptional, historical vineyard and contribute to the preservation of the landscape and the rural heritage of Catalonia as represented by the traditional dry-stone terraces where our ancestors grew their crops.

“At the same time, we want to explore the limits of Forcada, a late-ripening ancestral variety, by planting the vines at a higher elevation to compensate for the effects of rising temperatures.”

The company noted that the new vineyard will be dedicated exclusively to Forcada on south-facing terraces.

The terraces will have an elevation of 700m. Familia Torres will be reviving the variety at its long-standing Les Escostes estate in Llacun.

Once completed, the produce from the vineyard will be used to make small batches that will be supplied exclusively to restaurants.

The new initiative is said to be part of the project began more than three decades ago.

Forcada is said to be the only white grape variety that ripens slowly and maintains a definite acidity level with the right characteristics to produce quality wines.

Familia Torres claims that it has recovered more than 50 varieties since the initiative to revive old vines began.