Page 22 www.lux-review.com LUX 2021 Food & Drink Awards Established as a family-owned business in 1999, Bodegas Comenge is an organic winery focusing on a wines’ elegance, naturalness, and quality. Its reputation and product is unparalleled within the industry as the wines are created with such a precise foundation; a combination of an expert understanding of the weather and soil and of course, love. Located in the ‘Golden Mile’ of the Ribera del Duero, Bodegas Comenge is within the heart of the Spanish peninsula at an altitude of 900 meters above sea level and surrounded by pine trees and ancient castles. This picturesque view is ideal when touring the vineyards, all while customers can taste one of the most perfect wines from Spain- certified organic, handcrafted and selected from the family itself. Owner and Sale Director Alvaro Comenge states, “Our farming practices are aimed at promoting and maintaining biodiversity, carefully working the lands on which our vines are based. We understand viticulture, and we take care of the vineyard as one more organism in our rich ecosystem, maintaining the natural cover of the soil throughout the cycle and renouncing the use of insecticides, or any other chemical product, in caring for the crop.” The Comenge family has been within the industry for over 20 years. Since then, it has made it an internal effort to understand the land, surroundings, and magic that goes into making a robust and beautiful crafted bottle of wine. Jaime Comenge originally founded the company, and while he didn’t have any previous experience within this industry, he was linked through family. Jaime’s father wrote the first treaty about the wine industry in Spain at the beginning of the XXth century. Alvaro explains, “The book was a compilation of all the grape varieties that grew in Spain Sep21441 Bodegas Comenge A Sip of Success. Best Spanish Red Wine: Comenge Jacobus and - Northern Spain back then, and all the wines that were made, all from a biochemical and bromatological point of view. This book, called ‘The Wines and Vines from Spain’, had enormous importance academically. It is still used as a reference book.” Having that information and legacy under the belt of the family business, Bodegas’s reputation is known for its excellent production of natural wines, using incredibly avant-garde techniques gathered from the expertise passed down from generations. The most important part of the process for the family is to be respectful of the environment in which it grows its vines by not using any chemical products on the vineyard itself or the winemaking process. At Bodegas, you want to taste the natural fermentation of the wine and not be held back by bitter, chemically enhanced after tastes. While the grapes contain the flavour, the full brilliance of the fruit comes from the surrounding essence – the soil, the sun and the passion brought into the process. While the wine industry is a highly competitive sector, the biggest threat to business is climate change. So, the family had to develop a way to adapt without effecting its product’s quality, unique flavour, and freshness. Alvaro states, “In this sense, we are in several lines of investigation with different types of natural and indigenous yeasts, planting at higher altitudes, using different clones, and several different actions.” Although Bodegas is an artisanal producer, the family-run business is continuing its research and development to improve its elaborate methods, to maintain and surpass excellence within the industry – the ‘grapest’ in the business. Company Name: Bodegas Comenge Contact Name: Alvaro Comenge Web Address: www.comenge.com Contact Email: [email protected] There’s an often touted ‘rule’ in business: Don’t do it with family. Though, as we’ve seen time and time again, leading businesses are often born from ignoring that advice. Bodegas Comenge is one such company.
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