Vermut Falset Negre des de 1912

D.O. Montsant

Falset, the capital of Montsant. This town is situated in the southeastern part of the region, in a valley surrounded by the Sierra del Montsant and Sierra de Llaberia mountains. Located in the watershed of the Siurana River, between the Camp of Tarragona and mouth of the Ebro River.

50% Garnacha, 50% Cariñena (Mazuelo)

Vineyards owned by the members of the cooperative

1930-1990

Traditional dry-farmed viticulture. Indigenous varieties that are both head-trained and grown on high density trellises to reduce yields. Cultivated completely by hand, with minimal human intervention.

Licorella slate, sandy clay, and limestone soils

Mediterranean climate with strong climatic influences from the mountains that surround D.O. Montsant. Drastic temperature differences between day and night.

Fermentation and maceration on the skins in open top vats. Once the fermentation is complete the wine is lightly filtered and racked into 500L & 600L neutral barrels where 120 g/L of cane sugar are added and the wine is macerated with a blend of 120 different herbs recovered from a recipe that the Agricola Falset Marça used over 100 years ago. At this point, brandy is added to fortify the wine from 14% to 16% alcohol. The maceration is a year long, at which point the wine is racked into 100 year old wooden vats that have been used by the Agricola since its founding. No caramel or artificial flavors are added. Some of the principal ingredients in the maceration are tobacco leaf, rosemary, thyme, wild fennel, wormwood, mint, lemongrass, chamomile, and walnut.

The wine is aged 30,000L 100 year old vats that the Agricola has used and maintained since its founding. The wine is aged on average for three years in these vats before being bottled. The vermouth is bottled in small quantities and the vats are continuously refilled, similar in style to a solera.

Agricola Falset Marça is one of the most historic wineries in Montsant and Priorat, and is one of a collection of "Catedrales del Vino," or "Cathedrals of Wine." These were a collection of wineries designed by the famous architect Cesar Martinelli, a disciple of Gaudí. The "Catedral" of Agricola Falset Marça was designed in 1919, and one of the most historic productions of the winery was their vermouth, which they produced from before the inauguration of the building. In the 1960's, the traditional recipe of the historic vermouth was lost, and was recovered by chance nearly 50 years after it was last made. Nowadays, the winery faithfully produces one of the most unique products in the Spanish wine world following this historic recipe of macerating sweetened red wine produced by indigenous varieties with a blend of over 120 different herbs.