As he harvests this year’s crop, La Mare Wine Estate’s production manager, winemaker and distiller Jordi Sanvicens Moreno tells Emily Moore how he ‘fell into’ the business and why he places so much emphasis on terroir
THE pop as you uncork the bottle, the gentle glug as you pour the contents into the glass and then the bliss as you savour that first, welcome sip…
For many people, enjoying a glass of wine on a Friday evening is one of life’s little luxuries, as you finally begin to unwind after a hectic week.
But while many Islanders’ wine racks and fridges may feature offerings from France, Italy or Australia, how many include a bottle of Domaine de la Mare or Bailliage de le Mare?
“I would love it if more people came to La Mare Wine Estate and discovered our wines,” said Jordi Sanvicens Moreno, the estate’s production manager, winemaker and distiller.
Speaking while harvesting this year’s grapes, Jordi said it was a regular source of frustration to him that many Islanders had not visited the St Mary vineyard or sampled its produce for many years.
“I speak with many people who say that they haven’t been here for ten years or more,” he said. “But why aren’t they coming? It’s a beautiful place and the wines are improving every year and winning national awards. I think a lot of people have a memory of the wines from ten years ago and assume that they are still the same, but that isn’t the case.”
Indeed, even in the past four years since Jordi moved to Jersey to take up the position at La Mare, he says that there have been several changes.
“We are learning more and more each year, and I would love it now if people gave the wine a chance,” he said.
Having fallen into winemaking almost by accident after realising that he did not want to spend day after day in a laboratory, the former budding chemist worked in vineyards all over the world before deciding, after the Covid pandemic, that it was time to return to Europe.
“I wasn’t originally interested in winemaking,” admitted Jordi with a smile, as he added another bunch of grapes to those waiting to be pressed. “I studied chemistry at university but while I loved the subject, I couldn’t see myself working in a lab. I also realised that chemistry is a very general subject and when something is everything, it is almost nothing, so I needed a specialisation.”
Coming from the wine-producing region of Catalonia, it is perhaps therefore not surprising that Jordi chose winemaking as his specialism.
“I thought it sounded exciting,” he explained. “It sounded like something I would love, as I knew that working in this area, I would experience all four seasons, spend time both indoors and outdoors and use my chemistry skills.”
After completing his studies, Jordi initially remained in Spain, carrying out harvests in various regions, serving an internship with Rioja and then spending a couple of years with Cava. But then he decided it was time to start “visiting the world”.
“I worked in Canada, Australia, France and Germany before moving to Indonesia, where I spent nine years before coming to Jersey,” he said.
While Australia, France and Germany will be familiar to many for their wines, Indonesia is not a country whose bottles are a regular sight on supermarket shelves.
“It isn’t a big wine-producing area, but we were growing grapes and producing wines in Bali, where the volcanic soils and warm climate are conducive to harvesting good crops,” Jordi reflected.
Had it not been for the Covid pandemic, Jordi and his wife might have stayed longer in the tropical island but the outbreak made them reconsider their future.
“We were keen to come back to Europe and were looking at a few options,” he said. “Jersey came up and appealed because we both spoke English, the weather looked good and we liked the idea of being part of a small community.”
Admitting that that was more or less the extent of their knowledge of the Island, the couple packed their bags and embarked on the next stage of their adventure.
And while Jersey may be considerably smaller than Bali, Jordi has no doubt about its potential for producing quality wine.
“It is a tiny island but we get some good harvests and nearly every wine or product we enter into competitions wins some distinction,” he said. “I have no doubt that we can make good wines here. If you look at the map, our latitude is the same as that of Champagne and Alsace, regions with high reputations.
“While we don’t need to do the same as them, by using our resources and producing wines that reflect the terroir, we can make some really good products.”
Indeed, terroir is something that is particularly important to Jordi.
“When you make wine, it is all about the expression of the fruit, and the more expression it shows, the longer it can age,” he explained. “This, combined with some of our processes, means we can produce a wine that stays on the palate and showcases the terroir. That is what I want to show.
“I don’t think I’m one of those makers who put myself in front of the bottle. I don’t think people would taste the wine and know that it had been made by Jordi. For me, it’s all about showing off the grapes.”
Those grapes, grown across 2.2 hectares, include Orion, Seyval Blanc, Regent and Rondo varieties, as well as Sauvignac, a newer arrival to the estate.
While the crop varies every year, Jordi believes that this year’s yield should produce around 15,000 litres – or 20,000 bottles – of wine.
“It looks like a good crop,” he said. “Hot weather is good for the grapes, although it has occasionally been too dry for them this summer. Ideally, we would have liked some rain in July, but you can’t control the weather.”
And it is not only the lack of rain which has caused some challenges for the team this year.
“People might think that this has been an easy year because the dry weather stops the mildews that you can get in a wetter season,” he said. “However, this year there have been a lot of wasps, and if the wasps start cracking the grapes, that can cause problems.”
Despite the challenge caused by these insects, Jordi said the vines had “grown nicely without any stress” and had remained free of any infections.
“This is key to producing a good wine, as any distress in the vines would be reflected in the grapes,” he said. “You want to harvest the grapes when they are fully ripe. After that, the process varies depending on whether you are making white, red or sparkling wine.
“For red wine, for example, the grapes will be crushed and then left to ferment for two or three days depending on the variety and how much we want to extract from them. Then they will be pressed and left to age for as long as we feel necessary. Some goes into barrels and some into stainless steel. Every year is different, as we test the wine as we go along and adapt the oxygen levels.”
And while he admits that there is plenty of science involved in bringing the grape to the glass, Jordi says that a good sprinkling of belief is also important.
“When you study winemaking, you learn what to expect from the grapes and what to look for on day one, in the middle of fermentation and on the day you bottle the wine,” he said. “But sometimes when deciding when to end the fermentation, you have to rely on an element of faith because the key thing is not what the wine tastes like on the day you bottle it but how it will taste when you pour it into the glass.
“Sometimes, after fermentation, the wines can be very wild with a lot of expression, so they are too overpowering to drink at that stage. With red wine, in particular, in takes at least six months for it to calm down and become tame.”
Having been producing red and white wines throughout his time at La Mare, Jordi is particularly excited this year to have added a sparkling wine – Le Mourier – to the range.
“As I said, the latitude suggests that the grapes harvested here should be ideal for making sparkling wine,” he explained. “We are also seeing a lot of sparkling wine made in the UK, as the climate is ideal for it, so we are very positive about the opportunities for Le Mourier.”
In keeping with his approach to the other wines, Jordi remains committed to “letting the grapes do the talking”.
“I have had conversations with many winemakers across the world and the one thing on which we all agree is that the grapes show you the way,” he said. “When it comes to the quality of the wine, 60% comes from the grapes, 30% comes from following the wine ABC and making sure everything is done at the right time and that the right readings are taken, and 10% comes down to the eccentricity of the winemaker.
“Ultimately, if the grapes are good, the wine will be good. If the grapes are bad, you could be a genius and the wine would still be bad. It’s the same as cooking. If you start with the right ingredients, you can’t really go wrong, and I am confident that the grapes we are harvesting now will produce good wine.”
Having carried out this year’s harvest earlier than usual because of the hot, dry summer, Jordi is already wondering how next year’s weather might affect the next crop.
“I think we are going to face an interesting time next year,” he mused. “This year’s weather has been influenced by El Niño and the predictions are that the impact of this phenomenon could be even greater next year.
“Another hot, dry summer could be challenging not just for us but for the Island as a whole, so we will have to think about how we respond to that. For now, though, we are going to focus on turning these grapes into wine and on completing the harvest before the rain comes.”
And how will Jordi relax at the end of this arduous process?
“I will put my feet up and enjoy a glass of the Domaine de la Mare made with the grapes from last year’s harvest,” he said with a smile.
