Catalonia (Catalunya in Catalan and Cataluña in Spanish) is an autonomous community in the Northeast of Spain. It extends from the historic county (comarca) of Montsia in the South to the border with France in the north. The Mediterranean Sea forms its eastern border and offers 580 km of coastline. The Catalunya D.
O. C. was the first regional D. O.
C. in Spain. Created in 1999, it covers all the scattered vineyards that were not covered by one of the other 11 DOs in the region. The capital of Catalonia is the bustling Barcelona, Spain's second largest city and one of the largest ports on the Mediterranean.
Mainly cultivated in the Languedoc region, carignan originates from Spain. Because of its very resistant branches, it is often called hardwood. Its bunches are quite large. They are compact and winged with a lignified stalk. The berries are spherical in shape and take on a bluish-black colour. Carignan has a total of 25 approved clones, the best known of which are 274, 65 and 9. The carignan buds at the beginning of June and is protected from spring frosts. It does not reach maturity until the third period. Also, this grape variety needs warmth and sunshine. It appreciates dry and not very fertile soils. Carignan vines can live for more than 100 years. Those that are more than 30 years old produce a better wine. This wine is well coloured. It is generous and powerful at the same time. Pepper, cherry, blackberry, banana, raspberry, almond, prune and violet are some of the aromas that this grape variety gives off.
red wines from the region of Catalogne go well with generally quite well with dishes of beef, lamb or game (deer, venison) such as recipes of beef tournedos with boursin, lamb tagine with onions, purple olives and lemons... or rabbit with basquaise sauce.
On the nose in the region of Catalogne often reveals types of flavors of earth, oak or spices and sometimes also flavors of balsamic, red fruit or black fruit. In the mouth in the region of Catalogne is a powerful with a nice balance between acidity and tannins.
