Once again this year I was able to participate in the Premio Vila Viniteca de Cata por Parejas with my friend Daniel Monsonis. Like last year, we were fortunate to enter at the last minute, as we did not get a place during the registration phase, although this time we did not qualify for the final phase. The experience is always unforgettable. A magnificent staging that brings together the best national and international tasters, not in vain the winning couple was French and the second-placed Belgian.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In this edition, the qualifying phase was very particular. In my opinion, four wines made the difference. The Grange des P\u00e8res 2018, Languedoc-Roussillon, and the Bu\u00e7aco Branco M\u00edstico 2017, Portugal, were almost impossible wines, while the PX was hard to fault, at least the variety and the zone. The key was the matching of the three sparkling wines (France, Spain and Italy) and Peter Sisseck’s tempranillo (PSI). With the sparkling wines we evaluated the option of the three countries, however, we also saw the possibility of Champagne-Corpinat-Cava, deciding on the latter since the wood and volume of the Franciacorta led us to Catalonia rather than Italy. On the other hand, with the Tempranillo we went for a modern Rioja, as we never saw the typicality of Ribera del Duero.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
These were the seven wines from the qualifying round: <\/p>\n\n\n\n
– PSI 2021, Ribera del Duero We would have liked to have been able to participate in the finals, not only for being able to compete in the finals, but also for playing their seven wines. A priori, from the sidelines, we found the wines very enjoyable and playable, especially the Cabernet Sauvignon game, from France, New Zealand and Italy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The wines tasted in the Grand Final were:<\/p>\n\n\n\n – Agrapart & Fils Terroirs Blanc de Blancs Extra Brut, Champagne From here our congratulations to the winners of the 17th Vila Viniteca Tasting Award for Couples. Winning among 135 couples is a great success:<\/p>\n\n\n\n 1st Prize:\u00a0Maxime France y Pierre Citerne\u00a0<\/strong> Next year we will try again, although we hope to get a direct place to participate in the competition. In any case, we will continue training to be able to discover wines only with our senses, now, for the Spanish Championship!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Once again this year, Juan Luis Vanrell participated with Daniel Monsonis in the renowned Premio Vila Viniteca de Cata por Parejas. Although they did not manage to qualify for the final, the day left great sensations, wine challenges and a high-level atmosphere. Difficult wines, brave bets and a final phase with prestigious labels marked this edition, which ended with the victory of a French couple. A unique experience for wine and tasting lovers.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":23035,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3043],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n
– La Grange des P\u00e8res 2018, Languedoc -Roussillon
– Bu\u00e7aco Branco M\u00edstico 2017, Portugal
– Jacquesson La Cuv\u00e9e 742 D\u00e9gorgement Tardif, Champagne
– L\u2019O de L\u2019Origan Brut Nature Edici\u00f3n 13, Cava
– Ca\u2019 Del Bosco Annamaria Clementi 2014, Franciacorta
– Alvear Pedro Xim\u00e9nez 1927, Montilla-Morales<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
– Sandhi Romance Chardonnay 2022, California
– Pazo Barrantes Gran Vino Albari\u00f1o 2021, R\u00edas Baixas
– Paternina Gran Reserva 1962, Rioja
– Te Mata Coleraine 2021, New Zealand
– Ch\u00e2teau Latour Les Forts de Latour 2018, Bordeaux
– Marchesi Antinori Solaia 2020, Toscana<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
2nd Prize:\u00a0Peter Arijs y Stijn Verleyen<\/strong>
3rd Prize:\u00a0Alberto Bot\u00eda Gonz\u00e1lez y Eduardo Dequidt Herrero<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n