Sole Article

The single document established in accordance with Article 94(1)(d) of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 and the reference to the publication of the product specification for the name ‘Vallegarcía’ (PDO) are contained in the Annex to this Decision.

In accordance with Article 98 of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013, the publication of this Decision shall confer the right to object to the protection of the name specified in the first paragraph of this Article within two months from the date of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

ANNEX

SINGLE DOCUMENT

‘VALLEGARCÍA’

PDO-ES-02085

Date of application: 13.4.2015

1.   Name to be registered

Vallegarcía

2.   Geographical indication type

PDO - Protected Designation of Origin

3.   Categories of grapevine products

1.

Wine

4.   Description of the wine(s)

White wine

White wine of an intense yellow colour, exhibiting stone fruit, tropical fruit and white flower aromas of a medium-high intensity. Aromas of aromatic herbs — lavender, rosemary — in the background, and a toasted finish. Smooth attack, unctuous, no edges, fresh and round. Pleasant mid-palate with aromas of stone fruit, and a toasted and slightly bitter finish.

The value for maximum total alcoholic strength shall be within the legal limits in accordance with the relevant EU legislation.

General analytical characteristics

Maximum total alcoholic strength (in % volume)
Minimum actual alcoholic strength (in % volume)	12,5
Minimum total acidity	4,1 in grams per litre, expressed as tartaric acid
Maximum volatile acidity (in milliequivalents per litre)	12,5
Maximum total sulphur dioxide (in milligrams per litre)	160

Red wine

Red wine of an intense red colour, with garnet or ruby-garnet rim, a good robe. Medium-high intensity, red fruits, Mediterranean scrub and mineral aromas, or with balsamic touches of lavender and aromas of toasted wood. Rounded, with an easy attack, balanced, slightly tannic.

The value for maximum total alcoholic strength shall be within the legal limits in accordance with the relevant EU legislation.

General analytical characteristics

Maximum total alcoholic strength (in % volume)
Minimum actual alcoholic strength (in % volume)	12
Minimum total acidity	4,2 in grams per litre, expressed as tartaric acid
Maximum volatile acidity (in milliequivalents per litre)	20
Maximum total sulphur dioxide (in milligrams per litre)	150

5.   Wine making practices

a.    Essential oenological practices

Crop management practice

The grapes are harvested entirely by hand and placed in crates. The grapes are first sorted in the vineyard when the bunches are cut and a second time on the sorting table in the grape reception bay in the winery.

Restriction relevant to the wine-making process

The grapes are received at a level above that of the upper inlet of the tank, so that there is zero pressure in the piping, and the grapes are thus subjected to less aggressive treatment.

During tanking, the pulp passes through a tubular heat exchanger, where the temperature is lowered. This leaves the tanks cold for a period of time that may vary at the discretion of the team of oenologists, where necessary. This pre-fermentation maceration allows all the aromas present in the grapes to be extracted into an aqueous solution and makes the colour more stable.

Following the cold maceration process, the white grapes are pressed and the resulting must is settled until an appropriate turbidity of 400-800 NTU is obtained. Once fermentation has begun, a variable proportion of the must is transferred to unused French oak barrels, where it ferments and is aged on lees for four to six months. Both natural yeast and selected yeast is used in the alcoholic fermentation of the white and red wines. The white wines ferment at low temperatures: min. 15 °C, max. 26 °C. The proportion of the must that is fermenting in barrels is also borne in mind. The red wines are fermented at a minimum temperature of 15 °C and a maximum temperature of 30 °C. The tanking and maceration times vary according to the technical assessments of the team of oenologists but range from 7 to 28 days.

The red wines are devatted by hand. The marc enters into a pneumatic press by gravity, without the use of pumps, and is transferred to used barrels until tasting. Once all the types of wine have been obtained, both free-run and pressed, and malolactic fermentation is complete, all the wines are tasted by the committee of oenologists and the different blends are prepared. They are then aged in French oak barrels.

The wines are aged in the bottle for varying lengths of time before being placed on the market.

b.    Maximum yields

Viognier variety

11 500 kg of grapes per hectare

75 hectolitres per hectare

Syrah variety

9 250 kg of grapes per hectare

60 hectolitres per hectare

Merlot variety

8 500 kg of grapes per hectare

55 hectolitres per hectare

Cabernet Sauvignon variety

8 500 kg of grapes per hectare

55 hectolitres per hectare

Cabernet Franc variety

11 500 kg of grapes per hectare

75 hectolitres per hectare

Petit Verdot variety

14 600 kg of grapes per hectare

95 hectolitres per hectare

6.   Demarcated geographical area

The geographical area is cadastral parcel 448 in zone 9 of the municipality of Retuerta del Bullaque, which is located in the province of Ciudad Real. It covers 1 521 hectares.

7.   Main wine grapes variety(ies)

Cabernet Sauvignon

Syrah

Viognier

8.   Description of the link(s)

Environment (natural and human factors)

a)

Vallegarcia is the name of a valley with a specific geological substrate, known as Raña del Fresno, characterized by a special soil formation. Therefore, the grapes grown in the area have a number of unique characteristics (great intensity, aromatic quality and long on the palate). Furthermore, the high acidity and low pH of Vallegarcía's soils are unusual when compared with similar climate areas. Vallegarcía is a vineyard planted in soils whose edaphological classification is unique when compared with Castile-La Mancha's other vineyards. In a research project by the University of Castile-La Mancha (UCLM) entitled ‘Wine-growing soils in Castile-La Mancha: influence on the composition of the grape’, the profiles studied in Vallegarcía were classified as Typic Palexerult according to the Soil Taxonomy (Soil Survey Staff, 2006), and the Ultisol order is typical of raña soils (Vidal et al., 2004). Of the wine-growing soils studied in the research project, only the three Vallegarcía profiles belong to that order. Under the FAO's classification system (2007), P1, P2 and P3 — the three profiles analysed in the UCLM's report — were classified as Cutanic Alisol (Ferric, Chromic), Cutanic Alisol (Ferric, Skeletic) and Cutanic Alisol (Ferric, Skeletic) respectively. Moreover, the high acidity of the soils is reflected in the pH levels of the wines and their balance on the palate. The low calcium content and the high silica, iron and aluminium content are completely uncharacteristic of the wine-growing soils of Castile-La Mancha. It is interesting to compare these levels with those of the area's limestone soils, which are usually used for growing vines. According to data from Amorós et al. (2012b), the calcium content of Vallegarcía's soil is very different from the levels that can be found in topsoil layers of limestone soils (10,4 g∙kg-1 versus 230 g∙kg-1). Conversely, the levels of silicon (345,9 g∙kg-1) and iron (26,5 g∙kg-1) are considerably higher in the soils of the demarcated area as compared with Castile-La Mancha's wine-growing limestone soils (127,5 and 16,65 g∙kg-1 respectively). The level of aluminium present in the topsoil layer of a limestone soil is around 33,4 g∙kg-1, while in Vallegarcía's soil the level is 57,8 g∙kg-1. The low calcium content of the soil characterises Vallegarcía wines and gives them a different character from Castile-La Mancha's other wines. The high average quantity of elements classified as rare earth elements (cerium, lanthanum and neodymium) in Vallegarcía's soil (83,5, 44,5 and 36,5 mg∙kg-1 respectively) as compared with the average levels regionally (57,7, 23,5 and 21,6 mg∙kg-1 respectively) and globally (55, 35,5 and 30,5 mg∙kg-1 respectively) is worth noting. In general, the levels of these elements are higher in acid soils than in limestone soils (Amorós et al., 2012a).

b)

The influence of the Bullaque river and the streams that feed it, which surround the demarcated area, as well as the freshness of the valleys and the protection from the north winds provided by the mountains create a microclimate for the vineyard which moderates the extreme conditions both in winter and in summer. This favours the correct and complete ripening of the grapes.

c)

The wide variation in temperature between day and night, which is due to Vallegarcía's altitude above sea level, combined with the high rainfall in the area compared to other parts of the region, helps give the grapes an excellent tannic structure which increases the wines' suitability for ageing in the barrel and the bottle.

Description of the wine

Vallegarcía wines are characterised by their roundness and lack of edges. They also have an excellent tannic structure, which gives them an exceptional capacity to evolve and to keep over time. They can attain polyphenol values greater than 50 meq/l and a colour intensity greater than 12 AU.

The intensity and aromatic quality of the wines is defined by intense Mediterranean scrub (rockrose, heather) and balsamic (thyme, rosemary, lavender) aromas, as well as a high level of minerals (black slate, quartzite). They leave a bitter aftertaste at the back of the throat which prolongs the taste of the wine.

Link

The high acidity and low pH of the demarcated area's soils are also unusual. This combination gives the wines a bitter aftertaste at the back of the throat which prolongs the taste of the wine.

The freshness of the valleys and the protection from the north winds provided by the mountains have a moderating influence and help give the wines their roundness and lack of edges. The wide variation in temperature between day and night, which is due to the demarcated area's altitude above sea level, combined with the high rainfall, helps give the grapes an excellent tannic structure that allows the wines to attain polyphenol values greater than 50 meq/l and a colour intensity greater than 12 AU.

Even though the demarcated area is surrounded by the Castilla PGI area, its characteristics are significantly different from the neighbouring demarcated area on account of the following:

Natural factors

The geological substrate of the Raña is characterised by its high acidity and low pH, as well as the freshness of the valleys, the high rainfall and the protection that the mountains offer from the north winds create a microclimate that is very different from the neighbouring area.

The wide variation in the pH of the topsoil and subsoil layers, including a maximum variation of 4,1 points in profile 2 (pH = 8,9 in Ap and pH = 4,8 in Btg1), as well as the low calcium content, the high silica, iron and aluminium content and the presence of large quantities of rare earth elements make Vallegarcía different from the rest of Castile-La Mancha.

Human factors

The most obvious differences between the production methods of ‘Vallegarcía’ wines and those in the neighbouring areas, which are covered by the Castilla PGI, are as follows:

	Castilla PGI	Vallegarcía	Differences
White wines	≥9 % vol.	≥12 % vol.	Higher alcohol content
Red wines	≥10 % vol.	≥12 % vol.	Higher alcohol content
Red wines	≤18 meq/l	≤20 meq/l	Higher volatile acidity
White wines	≤16 000 kg/ha	≤11 500 kg/ha	Lower production per hectare
Red wines	≤16 000 kg/ha	≤14 600 kg/ha	Lower production per hectare
		>50 meq/l	More polyphenols
		>12 AU	More colour

The area was demarcated on the basis of its environment (the geological substrate of the Raña, with its high acidity and low pH, as well as the protection provided by the mountains). There is only one winery producing wine in the area, which is owned by the applicant.

It is worth noting that the demarcated area covers 1 521 hectares and there are no other vines planted or wineries located there other than those belonging to the applicant.

Moreover, other producers may use the registered name if they set up in the demarcated geographical area in the future, provided that they meet the conditions set out in the specification. This scenario is entirely plausible as the demarcated area covers 1 521 hectares and thus has room for more wineries.

9.   Essential further conditions

Legal framework:

In national legislation

Type of further condition:

Packaging in the demarcated geographical area

Description of the condition:

The wines must be bottled in the production area because, in all cases, the production process ends with a second period of ageing in the bottle. During this period, a process of reduction occurs, which enhances the quality of the wines, rounding out their flavour. They are ready for consumption when they attain the organoleptic characteristics set out for each type of wine in the specification.

Link to the product specification

http://pagina.jccm.es/agricul/paginas/comercial-industrial/consejos_new/pliegos/Pliego_Condiciones_Vallegarcia_20180719.pdf