2024 Celler Joan d'Anguera Les Maiols

Joan d'Anguera is run by the 2 brothers Joan and Josep d'Anguera. They are the 7th generation of winegrowers established in Darmós since 1820. Joan d'Anguera has 36 hectares of vineyards, 3 hectares of olive trees and 1 hectare of almond trees. They produce between 60,000 and 70,000 bottles per year, depending on the harvest.

From 1820 to 1984, the wine produced was sold in bulk. In 1984 their father, Josep Anguera Beyme, first started bottling their wine and the red "Joan d'Anguera" was launched, and since then the cellar has grown with a selection of wines that always respect the terroir. Josep studied agricultural engineering and Joan oenology. When their father died, they were very young. At that time, in the early 2000s, the fashion was for very concentrated wines, with a lot of alcohol, tannins and new oak, and at first they continued like this. The recognition was also there by wine critics of the most prestigious magazines of the time. But in 2008 they got tired of this way of working, the wines back then were very similar because they were all made in that standard international style.

The switch to biodynamics started in 2008 and since the 2012 vintage all wines have the Demeter (biodynamic) certificate and are EU organic certified. Their philosophy is based on respect for tradition and natural rhythm. They therefore follow the principles of biodynamic agriculture, which allows the wines to express the identity of the terroir. In the vineyards, they work the soil to keep it alive, preferring an environment rich in fauna and flora, with a variety of flowers and trees. They follow the cosmic rhythms while working and let nature take its course and express itself. Apart from plowing, all other activities in the vineyards are done manually. Almost all vineyards are en gobelet and those still planted in cordon royat are changing to gobelet. In the cellar, their job is to guide the wines, but without directing them where to go. They only use indigenous yeasts for the alcoholic fermentation and the malolactic fermentation takes place naturally. From the 2015 vintage, they no longer use sulfites during fermentation or bottling.