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THE STAFF AT THE BODEGA, WHICH WAS FOUNDED IN 1915 BY THE PIQUERAS FAMILY
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“ ’m not in any hurry”, admits Juan Pablo Cantos Serrano during our conversation.
Just like his wines maturing in the cellar, as a winemaker, he needs time. Building
up an identity does not happen overnight, nor even in the space of a few years. Since
his arrival at the bodega in 2017, he has been exploring, doing trials and trying various
combinations to craft wines that are a mirror to their terroir. It’s a pretty tall order, but
the challenge holds promise. Here, “it’s a blank canvas”, explains Cantos. It’s not like
in Ribera del Duero, where quality wineries are in plentiful supply and everything (or
almost) has already been tried. In Almansa, no bright new star in the wine firmament
had yet been allowed to shine.
The situation is starting to change, though. Several of Bodegas Piqueras’ signature
wines have been awarded excellent scores by the finest critics in the world. And not
just because they are technically irreproachable, but because, as perfect renditions
of the soil that birthed them, they are unique. Gradually, thanks to the efforts of the
winemaker, who is on a mission to demonstrate the outstanding qualities of his
home region of Almansa, the appellation has finally established its pedigree and
more importantly, its own specific identity. Before returning to his native village,
Cantos worked in many other wine regions, including Ribera del Duero, Murcia and
New Zealand. This experience made him realise that the quality potential of Almansa
had yet to be leveraged, despite the fact that it is home to felicitous conditions for
farming vines and producing premium wines. The discrepancy between the potential
and its materialisation can be traced back to the fact that although vines have long
been grown here, the wines were for many years sold in bulk.
SPRING 2024 • GILBERT & GAILLARD - THE FRENCH EXPERTS ON WINE
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