Torres Grans Muralles is a beautifully deep red with a wild and savoury nose, perfumed with juniper and cistus, coffee, liquorice, black cherry jam, mint and orange peel, red fruits and savoury spices. Very rich and complex on the palate but supple with excellent intensity and mid-palate elegance and balance.
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Brand: Familia Torres
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Description: Dry Red
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Vintages Available: 2017
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Country, Region: Spain, DOQ Conca de Barberà
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Ratings: WS 92, JS 94
Grapes
44% Cariñena, 31% Garnacha, 17% Querol, 5% Monastrel, 3% Garró.
About the Producer
Jaime Torres emigrated to Cuba in 1855. On the island he made his fortune through the flourishing oil industry and seaborne trade. In 1870 he returned home a rich man and went into business with his brother, a wine grower. Together, in 1870, they founded the family company, in Vilafranca del Penedès, where the company still has its head office. One of Jaime Torres’ ideas was to build a 600,000-litre wine vat, the largest in the world. During the Spanish Civil War the winery was bombarded, leaving everything in ruins, including the enormous vat. Miguel Torres Carbó, a fourth generation member of the family, rebuilt the winery in 1940 and started business up again. He brought an end to the sale of bulk wine and started to market it in labelled bottles. In the year of reconstruction, when France was under German control and unable to provide wine, Miguel Torres travelled to the United States to promote his wines. It was in this period that the brands Sangre de Toro, Viña Sol and Coronas first came into being.
In 1966 work started on the planting of imported grape varieties: at first Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon and later on Merlot, Pinot noir, Riesling and Gewürztraminer. That same year, Miguel A. Torres married Waltraud Maczassek, a German artist, who has also collaborated in the sale of Torres wines on the German market. When Torres produced their first Riesling they named it in honour of Waltraud.
In 1975, Bodegas Torres began growing organic grapes for wine.
In 1991, after the death of Miguel Torres, the winery passed into the hands of his son Miguel A. Torres, the company’s current President and Managing Director.
Torres is the family winery with the most extensive vineyards in the Denomination of Origin (DO) of Penedès and the largest winery in Spain. Outside of the Torres family's native Penedès region, they own vineyards in DO Conca de Barberà, DO Toro, DO Jumilla, DO Ribera del Duero, DOQ Priorat and most recently in DOC Rioja - in the last three areas with new wineries or wineries under construction. Likewise, Torres is also Spain's largest producer of DO wines under its own label, exporting to more than 140 countries.
They also run the Miguel Torres Chile winery in the Chilean Central Valley, and in the United States (California) where in 1986 Marimar Torres founded Marimar Estate.
Last year, for the second consecutive year, Torres was named The World's Most Admired Wine Brand by professionals of the sector, according to the ranking published by Drinks International, topping a list of 50 wineries.
Torres signed up to the Barcelona Declaration at the WCP in 2011; pledging to reduce their carbon footprint per bottle by 20% by 2020, as well as to make all buildings sustainable, recycle and recover materials to reduce waste, reduce the ‘water footprint’, to use only renewable energy, to conserve biodiversity and to limit the use of chemicals. Miguel A Torres, one of the architects of the Declaration, and Torres as a principle sponsor, strongly believes that, ‘wineries should put self-interest aside for the good of the environment.’
Vineyard
Torres Grans Muralles takes its name from the walls that protected the monastery at Poblet during the Mercenary Wars. The unmistakeable identity of Grans Muralles is due to the stony, slate ground (Licorella) of the region, and to grape varieties believed to be extinct, such as Garró and Querol, all re-interpreted according to modern viticultural techniques. Together with Cariñena and Monastrell they lend a unique spirit to this wine.
The grapes are sourced from the estates of Poblet, Conca de Barberà, at an elevation of 445-470 metres a.s.l. This is a land characterized by deep rocky soils with layered deposits of Paleozoic slate and granite gravel beds. This ensures swift drainage and low water retaining capacity. The mineral-rich soils and limited water supply contribute to the production of wines that display great individuality, concentration and exceptional quality. The yield is approximately 4,000-5,000 kg/ha.
Vinification
After the harvest, maceration, which lasts about 15-20 days is performed. The alcoholic fermentation, which lasts 12 days, takes place in stainless steel tanks at a temperature of 26ºC.
Ageing
After the malolactic fermentation, Torres Grans Muralles is aged in new French oak (Tronçais fine grain) barrels for a period of 18 months.
Tasting Notes
A beautifully deep brooding red with a wild and savoury, almost leathery nose, the fruits perfumed with juniper and cistus; its olfactory complexity broadens to encompass suggestions of coffee, liquorice, black cherry jam, mint and orange peel with flecks of red fruits and savoury spices. On the palate the wine is very rich, fat, dry but supple with excellent intensity. Full-flavoured with cassis, chocolate, peppery, black raspberry, minty, black cherry, meaty vanilla flavours with a dried fig and orange peel finish. But – despite such powerful attributes - the key to this wine is its mid-palate elegance and balance. Delicious and packed with style it has the grace and balance to age for a decade and beyond. In the words of renowned wine critic Andrew Jefford “An exciting success, and it will be fascinating to see how this Catalan thoroughbred evolves in the years to come”
Analysis
14.5% alcohol vol.
Food Suggestions
Torres Grans Muralles pair well with grilled, stewed or roast meats and game dishes. More elaborate dishes could include: Pork fillet with honey, rosemary vinaigrette and glazed spring onions; Lamb shoulder baked in its juices with potato and shallow-fried onion.
Serving temperature: 18°C.
Cellar
Stored under the right conditions, Torres Grans Muralles will hold its potential for the next 10-15 years.
