Adegas, plural of cellar word which means the place where the wine is stored. Word of Portuguese origin, it is also used among Spanish-speaking peoples, in French Cave. Wine is a demanding drink, with a lot of rules and care. At the table, wine is excellence, at an event, wine is the authority. For wine to always be at the centre of any meeting, it is essential that it be properly handled and preserved, hence the importance of a cellar, a cellar of excellence.

A wine cellar is the air-conditioned environment perfectly suited to preserve them, either to make them age or to ensure the maintenance of their characteristics until the moment of tasting. Formerly it was the compartment of the house, usually underground, at cool temperature, where the wine is kept at ideally constant temperature and without influence of light for reds and whites and effervescents.

Photo: Visit Cave of Father Auguste - Vouvray 2016

Photo: Cave of the old Palace in Tel Kabri - Israel and You

A little history

Israeli and American researchers found traces of the first winery in history in 2013. It was in Tel Kabri, an archaeological site in Israel. There, they found 40 ceramic amphoras with remains of the oldest and most sophisticated wine in the Middle East, about 3,700 years ago. In the Bronze Age, traces of wine found suggest that they should be soft, strong and used for medicinal purposes. Today, cellars have evolved to offer better wine conservation and the technology is being applied diligently to make them ever more sophisticated.

And the Terrors in all this?

Terroir is the French term for the place where the wines are produced. It is a concept because it includes all the stages of winemaking. It includes specific features of the environment, topography, climate, landscape and biodiversity.

The terroir begins with the human being who detects in a certain place the ability to plant grapes, soil, climate, winds, vegetation.

It is a space in which a collective culture is defined, the interactions between an identifiable physical and biological environment and the wine-growing practices that apply there, which give distinct characteristics to the original products of this space.

The terroir evolves in time like man. This is what we can measure, climate, grape variety, terrain and interaction with human work.

What about tonight?

Did you know?
Montagne Saint Emilion is a controlled label of origin that produces exclusively red wines mainly from the type Merlot.

• Chateau Corbin
  AOC Mountain St Emilion
• Corbin Red Master without sulphites added
• Agriculture High Environmental Value
• Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon 2 to 5 years

Perfect on summer grills!

• Bodegas Borsão
  Campo de Borja, Aragon
• Borsao Seleccon
• Convention Agriculture
• Grenache, Tempranillo, Syrah 3 to 5 years

Perfect on a Spanish paella!

Did you know?
The DOC Campo de Borja is recognized as "the empire of the Grenache". Thanks to its microclimates and the richness of its soils, Grenache develops its entire personality in this specific region of Spain even if its production is not in large quantities.

Did you know?
Pinotage is a grape variety born from a cross between Cinsault and Pinot Noir. On the nose it reminds us of the aromas of the pinot noir and in the mouth the structure of the cinsault.

• Mooiplaas
• The Bean
• Convention Agriculture
• Pintage
• 5 to 8 years

Perfect on a firepot!