Ànima Negra 'Quíbia' Premsal blend, Mallorca, Spain 2022

Founded in 1994 by Pere Ignasi Obrador and Miquelàngel Cerdà, Ànima Negra aims to realize the full potential of Mallorca's native grapes. The winery is located on the historic Son Burguera estate, with vineyards that are dry-farmed and biodynamically managed. Ànima Negra has garnered worldwide praise for its unique and elegant wines, and in 2010, the Slow Food Movement inducted the winery into the Ark of Taste.

• Winemaker: Pere Ignasi Obrador and Miquelàngel Cerdà
  
• Farming: Natural farming with biodynamic practices, avoiding chemical insecticides and herbicides.
• Variety: 60% Premsal, 40% Giro Ros
  
• Terroir: The Son Bennassar vineyard in the southeast of Mallorca, near Felanitx. The vineyard spans 12.5 acres with calcareous silt and iron oxide soil, at an elevation of 330 feet. The vines, planted in 1991, are trained in Gobelet with a density of 1422 vines per acre and a yield of 2.4 tons per acre.
• Vinification: Hand-harvested. Cooling of the grapes for 12 hours, before a double selection process. The first one over a manual selection table and afterwards optically, grape by grape to obtain only the best grapes. Short macerations of the Giró Ros & Premsal, before a very gentle meticulous pressing. Racking follows into stainless steel tanks to initiate the fermentation at 17ºC  using our own indigenous yeast strain, that gives maximum typicality to the wine. Being three different stages of maturation, the three varieties are worked separately, only after three months ageing on their own lees, is the coupage done.
  
• Aging: Aged for 4 months in 7,000 L stainless steel tanks.
• Tasting Note: Pale yellow with a hint of green. The nose is initially reductive but becomes vibrant and fresher on the palate. Exhibits good freshness with a balanced and lively character.
• Critic Scores: "The white 2022 Quíbia... has 12.9% alcohol and good freshness. Unfortunately, it feels quite reductive and is difficult to read on the nose, but the palate feels vibrant and fresher. Give it a little bit of time." — Wine Advocate, Jan 2024
• Pairings: Ideal with seafood, light salads, and Mediterranean dishes.

From our July 2024 Bottle Cult Notes:

Ànima Negra Quíbia,  Mallorca, Spain 2022
Ànima Negra was founded in 1994 when two friends, Pere Ignasi Obrador and Miquelàngel Cerdà, decided to unlock the full potential of Mallorcan wines. Using unused milk tanks at Pere’s family dairy farm, they created two barriques of wine from Callet grapes purchased from local farmers. Encouraged by their initial success, the friends formed a partnership to continue their winemaking journey.

Situated in southeast Mallorca (Majorca), one of Spain's Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean, Ànima Negra produces its wines on the historic Son Bennassar vineyard near Felanitx. The estate, dating back to the 13th century, has a traditional winemaking area that historically supplied wine to locals. Ànima Negra sources grapes from over 135 carefully selected parcels of land within a six-mile radius of the winery, with most vines aged 50 to 85 years. The winery prioritizes natural farming, avoids chemical insecticides and herbicides in favor of biodynamic practices, and only allows native, indigenous yeasts for fermentation. Their unique, elegant wines have garnered global praise and a loyal following. In 2010, the Slow Food Movement inducted Ànima Negra into the Ark of Taste, an international catalog of endangered heritage foodways.

The Quíbia, named for the Mallorcan concept of a calm, worry-free state of mind, showcases the versatility of the indigenous local grapes.  This is a blend of 60% Premsal and 40% Giró Ros. Premsal adds roundness to the body while Giró Ros contributes the high acidity. The grapes are hand-picked over a month at three different maturation levels, and fermented in stainless steel tanks followed by four months of lees aging. The winery uses only native yeast from their vineyards to strengthen the Mallorcan characteristics of these indigenous varietals.

I love a good Spanish island wine and am always thrilled when a new one lands on the DECANT shelves. The Quíbia does not disappoint! An enticing straw-lemon color with flecks of green, it hits the nose with aromas of white peach, pear, sea brine, and jasmine. The deep, weighty texture delights the palate with concentrated flavors of ripe peach, Anjou pear, and briny capers. Crisp, lively, and well-balanced, this wine pairs beautifully with bay scallops, langoustines, mussels in a butter broth, and seafood paella. Some may find the wine a bit reductive and wish to age it longer, letting it evolve. I say, make your own rules— decant it and drink it now, or hold on to it for a year while it continues to evolve! —Karen Smith