Finca Casa Balaguer

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Finca Casa Balaguer 2021 'Tragolargo' Orange Wine, Alicante DO

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Does the name Rafa Bernabe ring a bell? If so, then you may already be familiar with Finca Casa Balaguer as it was his estate before selling it to his right hand man, Andres Carull.

Before anything, maybe we should start by introducing Andres and how he met Rafa. Both are from the town of Villena in Alicante, where Rafa's family owned vineyards and made wine. Andres had his first revelatory sip of natural wine in a bar in St. Emilion in Bordeaux. Not the first place you’d think of for natural wine, but that’s how the story goes. Taken back by that cloudy glass of wine he was served, he wondered if anyone back home was making wines like that and of course all roads led him to Rafa Bernabe. For those of you that don’t know who Rafa is, well we could say he’s the father of natural wine in Valencia.

When Selections de la Viña started importing wine back in 2013, Rafa was one of the hottest producers out there. Rafa and Andres worked side by side for about 3 years when Rafa started to have some health issues and decided it was time for him to move on from winemaking. As an idolized international winemaker, he had offers from international buyers but preferred to keep it local and find a fellow native who would feel and understand his land the same way he did. With that in mind, it was pretty obvious who was first in line. With little to no financial resources, Andres’ first reaction was to reject the offer but after days of not sleeping, he became determined to find a way. He approached family, friends, and banks, of course, until finally gathering enough money to buy the estate from Rafa.

Today, Andres Carull works with his wife Marta Ribera. All of their wines are certified organic by the Organic Agriculture Committee of Valencia. However, they go one step further and practice biodynamic methods as well. Half of the vines are found surrounding the town of Villena at over 600 meters above sea level and the other half in the Natural Park of La Mata right on the Mediterranean coast. They have a total of 25 hectares of local varieties: Monastrell, Garnacha, Garnacha Peluda, Tortosina, Roja, Malvasía, Moscatel of Alexandria, etc.

Social Media Links
Instagram: @casabalaguer_vinessens, @andres_fincacasabalaguer