Partida Creus ‘VN’

Partida Creus ‘VN’ – the sun splits stones; clouds dare not interrupt the sky’s dazzling cerulean; VN sits on ice. The Vinel-Lo Tinto is the transference of energy from one form to the next. The revolving of a perfect summer’s day and this bottle is the fulcrum. Blending seven local varietals that lingered in the waste basket of memory, this light-bodied quaffer rejoices in the pleasure of simplicity. Initially tickling the nose with an eye-widening freshness, it attacks the jowls with a racy, if not somewhat volatile, acidity. Unexpected lime zest precedes a theatrical display of red berries and wild Mediterranean herbs before crackling the tongue with gentle spice. Bring it down a few degrees and watch this tireless elixir dance.

The Partida Creus project has been a labour of sustainable love since 2007 for Italian architects Antonella Gerosa and Massimo Marchiori. Having uprooted their lives in Piedmont, they sought agricultural solace in Bonastre, a whistle-stop village in the Baix Penedés region. The initiative was spearheaded by ecological yearnings from the outset; they renovated a dilapidated farmhouse with recycled materials, purchased vineyards that were almost, if not fully abandoned and began working towards reintegrating forgotten varietals into the viticultural zeitgeist. Some of these autochthonous varieties had been disqualified from the D.O altogether, most were verging on complete obsolescence. This was not solely a wine-making operation but a restoration of regional history, yielded by tradition and happy soils.

Partida Creus ‘VN’ – needle-points of blinding sunshine, determined to remind us of longer, warmer days. An exceptionally honest ode to the Baix-Penedés region that shall undoubtedly put a little rhythm back into one’s feet. An electric dance-partner, magnetic and unmissable.