The Mas Martinet winery, founded in 1981, is still more alive than ever, offering you an interesting “vi brisat”.

40 years ago, a new winery was born in the lands of Tarragona called Mas Martinet. A family project spurred on by tradition and knowledge of the method of making wine. A project that, forty years later, is a reflection of sustainability and humanity. And also of innovation mixed with tradition, such as its brisado wine, better known in the area as vi brisat or orange wine by the more modern ones.

Today, it is a winery made up of several plots that are spread over different areas and estates. You can find them at Mas d’en Martinet (which gives the winery its name), Mas Seró, Els Escurçons and some plots of land on the old road between Torroja and Gratallops, on the road to Pesseroles, in the Serra Alta area. and another one directly in La Torroja.

The interesting thing about having the plots distributed in different areas with their particular characteristics is that each type of grape they grow absorbs all the advantages of the land that sees it grow. For example, the Mas d’en Martinet estate has a typical licorella soil. While the most interesting feature of the Serra Alta is its altitude of 400 meters, but not higher than the Escurçons estate, at 601 meters. Or the cold and deep lands of the farms located in Torroja.

The “vi brisat” that comes along the path of Psseroles.

The bottles that we are going to talk about today, although they are not the only ones that you can enjoy from this winery, are the so-called “Pesseroles Brisat”.

The vi brisat, breezed wine or “orange wine” as it is easier to find internationally, is recovering a recognition that until now had only belonged to reds and whites. But that does not make it new by any means, since the tradition of the vi brisat on the Mediterranean coast has its own path, as its name indicates.

This interesting variety of wine is made from white grapes, but it is treated like red wine. In fact, that is where the name “brisat or breeze” comes from, since one of the ways of calling the solid part of the grain (mainly the skin) in this particular area is “breeze”.

In the case of the bottles from the Mas Martinet winery, three grape varieties are used: the white Picapoll, the white Garnatxa and the Pedro Jimenez (also known as Pedro Ximénez or simply PX). They are traditional varieties of the area and have been planted for almost twenty years on the Pesseroles path. The soil of these plots is characterized by a greater presence of clays in the subsoil. Which translates into a wine with a great structure.

Contrary to the aromas that we can find in whites, which are usually more fruity, this white wine treated as a red is characterized by aromas anchored to the earth. Aromas of ripe fruits, herbs and plants typically related to the mountains.

The search for non-intervention has put these traditional wines in the spotlight.

The need to use more sustainable methods that avoid causing further damage to the ecosystem is what has led this ancient technique to be of interest to all wine lovers.

Unlike other wines made from white grapes, which go through various processes to achieve the purity that characterizes them, Brisat wine goes in the opposite direction. Instead of eliminating the solid components after pressing the grapes to carry out the fermentation, said fermentation is carried out together with the skins and the seeds of the grapes. These will darken the must to a shade that can range from golden orange to a powerful amber. According to the days of fermentation and the previous maceration of the grape.

Although vi brisat is a well-known tradition in the Mediterranean area, we can go much further back in time to find the origin of the process, taking a trip to old Georgia, where wine-growing vestiges of thousands of years old can be found.

There are more and more wineries that join to carry out this type of process, getting new bottles and the rediscovery of old flavors.

In the case of the “Pesseroles Brisat”, it is the recovery of the vi brisat by the Mas Martinet and Sara Pérez winery, which has run the family winery for more than a decade. Since it recovers a traditional process, it is considered an artisan wine, with slow cold fermentation and maceration next to the skin that lasts 3 months. To later spend a good season in glazed ceramic jars.

Eight years of research to find the key and the quality of the vi brisat “Pesseroles Brisat”.

By the time tests began to be carried out to obtain a brisado white wine, the red wines of the Mas Martinet winery were already reaping a reputation for their high quality. So, the new wines could not be less. That is why it was investigated and experimented for eight years, to achieve a quality that was up to the already known fame.

The result has been a powerful wine with notes of oxidation characteristic of aged white wines from the Mediterranean.

The first commercialization of “Pesseroles Brisat” was carried out in 2016. The tribute to the traditional brisado style recognized in Catalonia was ready. After harvesting the three varieties (picapoll, garnatxa blanca and Pedro Ximénez) in similar quantities, a joint production is carried out. In this case, the fermentation with the skins lasted a month and a half, together with its respective three-month rest. The aging in the aforementioned glazed jars would last another 16 months.

Although just over 400 bottles were produced, you can still find bottles of this vintage in our store.

But all the research did not stop at just one year.

Also in 2017, a new consignment of this wine was made, although even smaller, of only 358 bottles. The same process as the previous year was followed, with its fermentation, its rest and its aging. And, just like the previous year, a wonderful amber colored final product was achieved.

And, just as this traditional process is now gaining the interest of those interested in wine, this wine is named in the “Guia de vins de Catalunya 2021”.

Although there are still some bottles in stock, they are the last ones that can be enjoyed in 2017.

The following year, the last year that you can discover in our store, was the most productive of all. And yet we are talking about less than a thousand bottles, 796 to be exact. Already following the process that had been successful, with its harvest of the three varieties, the joint elaboration, the fermentation with skins for a month and a half, the rest for three and its aging for sixteen months. Although it was a more prolific vintage than in previous years, there are not many bottles left in our store either.

And, all of them, characterized by a translucent bottle design that reveals the amber color of the wine in all its splendor.

If you are looking for the traditional flavor of the Mediterranean, go ahead and try the vi brisat from this special Catalan winery that has opted for tradition as innovation.