Laura S. Lara

Updated Monday, February 19, 2024-01:38

"People think that we dance naked and barefoot in the vineyard," joked

Federico Schatz

, from Bodegas Schatz (Ronda), during the meeting of biodynamic winegrowers organized by the riverside winery Cruz de Alba last October. And he is right. This significant singularity on which

biodynamic agriculture

is based , the work with vital energies in nature and not only with material needs, the consideration of

cosmic rhythms

in plant production and animal husbandry, is what has most transcended outside the wine-growing environment. Something that many have classified as an anecdote or "geekism." However,

biodynamics is much more than moon phases and cow horns

.

According to the

Association for Biodynamic Agriculture in Spain

, this type of agriculture is based on a holistic approach in which vitality is the priority. Its origin is found in the series of lectures given by

Rudolf Steiner

in 1924, and is based on the principle that biodynamic farmers give more back to the land than they take from it when they grow crops and raise animals. The farm is considered as a living organism in which plants, animals and human beings are jointly integrated and in which the influence of the cosmos, the microscopic life of soils, crops and the natural environment interrelate. It seems difficult to understand, but in practice, they say, it is much simpler.

It has been more than 40 years since biodynamic agriculture was implemented in Spain and more than 25 years since we have been able to enjoy biodynamic wines. According to data from

Demeter

, the main international certifier, in our country,

biodynamic viticulture accounts for 20% of the total biodynamic crops

, with 2,500 hectares and 61 operators. This extension is around 10% of the world total. For Sergio Ávila, viticulturist and winemaker from Cruz de Alba, biodynamics is the key to promoting the connection and balance between all the elements: the vines, the soils, nature and the cosmos: "The objective is to ensure the balance of the ecosystem, achieve a healthy and living vineyard, and thus ensure that the wine expresses its origin with full definition and purity.

A

holistic, coherent and alternative philosophy of work and life

that faces current challenges such as climate change, water scarcity and the search for maximum purity and expression, and which translates into wines with soul and personality. . Committed and honest wines born from a

healthier relationship with the environment and a reconnection with the planet

. Conscious wines of proven quality. "The vines speak, there is a connection, a part of energy, but then there is the proof-result. The best wines in the world are biodynamic," stated Rafa López, from Sexto Elemento (Valencia), during the symposium.

Tasting practice:

To Pita Cega (Lagar de Sabariz)

Lagar de Sabariz

is the name of the small, large winery of Pilar Higuera, one of the most relevant women in the Spanish wine scene, especially when it comes to organic and biodynamic cultivation. With

93 Parker points

, its most emblematic wine, A Pita Cega, a blend of 50% treixadura and albariño worked in Ribeiro but outside the DO according to the principles of Rudolf Steiner and aged for 12 months on lees, is also one of the most valued in Galicia.

Price: 39 euros

Terrers Brut Nature (Recaredo)

This cava represents the style that this century-old Penedés winery has maintained from the beginning, its professionalism and, above all, its honesty.

Made

from

_

_

_ very long breeding. Fresh, mineral and balanced, with a background of delicious pastries and nuts.

Price: 27 euros

Pinot Noir (F. Schatz)

"Natural wines with good balance, ripe tannins, soft acidity and healthy." This is how

F. Schatz

defends

his creations in the heart of the Ronda mountain range, Malaga. His labels are a botanical compilation of the flowers and plants that the producer uses in biodynamic preparations, all wild and native, grown in the environment. Wines that, when decanted, achieve better oxygenation and a greater display of natural and lively aromas. Like this

pinot noir aged for 8 months in French oak

, intense and deep, but with marked acidity. An elegant, enveloping and balsamic wine.

Price: 27 euros

Natural White (Lagravera)

100% natural, sulfite-free, and

100% white barnacha

grown biodynamically and fermented with skins. The Natural Blanco made by

Pilar Salillas

, from Lagravera, in the Serra Llarga (Lérida), halfway between the Pyrenees and the Ebro valley, is an intermediate style between breezy and white. "A wild wine that, when aerated, shows aromas of fennel and resin, green apple, and a fibrous and crunchy texture," he says. A fruity white, medium-bodied and very aromatic, a pure expression of the character of this Lleida landscape.

Price: 14.80 euros

Respect (6th Element)

"This wine is made with two ingredients: grapes and respect," explains

Rafa López

, winegrower at the Valencian winery

6º Elemento

. "Respect for the work inherited from our ancestors, for the native Bobal variety, for the land, with traditional cultivation, for the vineyard, with

95-year-old vines and production of one kilo per vine

, and for the production, without intervention: grapes, only grape," he insists. The result of this homage is a unique wine, a banner of the personality of the Utiel-Requena terroir.

Price: 29.90 euros

Biographical Rosé (Grape of Life)

In the north of Toledo,

Carmen López Delgado

makes wines under a prism of honesty and authenticity that is out of the ordinary. Uva de vida is the project that she directs together with her husband and that has already become a way of life. This organic rosé attests to this.

Made with Graciano and Tempranillo, with biodynamic certification and without added sulfites

, it is a treat for lovers of natural wines.

Price: 12.95 euros

Finca Los Hoyales (Cruz de Alba)

Coming from a small plot of

old Tempranillo vines planted in 1958

on the plot that gives it its name, parallel to the course of the Duero, this wine is the expression of the place where it was born. "Winged, alive, expansive and vertical, a compendium of a thousand nuances of fresh and clear nature," explains its producer,

Sergio Ávila

. A signature wine, complex and elegant, that represents the excellence of biodynamics in Ribera del Duero.

Price: 77.15 euros