In September of 2012, Fermentations! owner Charles Fajgenbaum, had the crazy impossible dream of heading off to Spain, and not coming back without 20 tons of exceptional grapes for winemaking. Not just any grapes, but grapes from Catalonia, a region known for a perfect grape climate, and growers proud of their vines.
Well, Charles is back, and wending their way to Fermentations! are 20 tons of Grenache Noir, Tempranillo, Merlot and Shiraz. Why these grapes? Grenache Noir and Tempranillo represent the best traditional grapes of Spanish winemaking, having been grown for many hundreds of years. Merlot and Syrah reflect the forward thinking of the local farmers, finding grapes traditionally grown elsewhere that do exceptionally well in Catalan vineyards.
Not just any Catalan vines, but vines in the Montsant Appelation, a mountainous area surrounding Priorat, whose vineyards, with a unique soil type called Licorella (limestone infused with quartz-like crystals), are tended to by family members providing grapes to a winery operated by family members.
The grapes, organically grown and hand harvested, were crushed, and put into 22-kilo containers, loaded into a 40-foot reefer, and shipped to Toronto where they will arrive by Wednesday, October 17.
The grapes are available to Fermentations! clients for on-premise winemaking. Branded as Grapemasters grapes, they are also available to home winemakers looking to buy the best grapes that Mother Nature offers.
Since 1993, Torontonians, passionate about great wine and the art of winemaking have been flocking to Fermentations! where every fall, they experience the anticipation of the harvest, and the passion of the process of turning excellent grapes into extraordinary wines.
"Every year, our clients look for something unique and special to complement the grapes that we always bring in from our own Niagara region. This year's excellent winegrape adventure is making the best of Spanish grapes available as well. It has taken me many years of effort to source grapes of this calibre, and can I hardly wait to start making the wines that will make my wine cellar even better."
At just $570.00 for a 72 bottle "barrique", these wines outperform many commercial wines at more than twice the price. A 10 liter, 26 bottle "cuvee privee" size is also available. In 2011, wines made at Fermentations! were pitted against commercial wines, in front of a panel of experts. The majority of the time, the experts were unable to determine which was the "amateur made wine", often selecting commercial wines in the flights, as the one made by Charles.
As the Catalan expression goes, "NOMES AMB EL COR PUR, ACONSEGUEIXS FER REALITAT BOIGERIES IMPOSSIBLES". Roughly translated, it means, "Only with a pure heart can you get crazy impossible things".
Fermentations! is located at 201 Danforth Avenue in Toronto, and online at www.fermentations.ca. A photo essay, as well as a video of Fermentations! Excellent Spanish WineGrape adventure is available at the website.
~ Marketwire - Oct. 11, 2012
