Ritme

Ritme Celler has a name of its own, Albert Jané, a young man born in El Vendrell, and whose great-grandfather founded a family-owned wine cellar in the Baix Penedès in 1914. Here, he began to market wines in bulk, and he continued his activity until, in 1985, Benjamí Jané, Albert's father, gave the winery its final boost. He redirected the business, created the brand Jané Ventura and began to bottle his wines. In 1990 the cava would arrive, and in 1991 the red wine, but his objective was always to produce wines that transmitted the affection that the Jané family has for their land. This is the philosophy that Albert Jané applies. He strictly complies with it, with the local varieties of Grenache and Carignan, both in his first project Acustic Celler, in Montsant, and in this new one, Ritme in D.O.Q. Priorat.

Albert Jané started his adventure on his own when he left the family winery, where he shared his work with his brother, Gerart. He went to the lands of Montsant in 2003, purchasing 1.5 hectares of vineyards in Capçanes. Then, in 2010, he started with 7 hectares in Priorat. However, Albert has always been very curious, so recently, and after his experience and success on his own, he returned to Penedès, to his origins in Mas Vilella with his brother Gerart. He returned to the country house from the 16th century on the slopes of the Sierra del Montmell, in Bisbal del Penedès. Here, he has created Autóctono wines, a brand he registered some years ago and that is focused on varieties that search for the essence of what is native, with a slightly technological project, and with the aim of creating ‘vinos de viñas’; the same philosophy he applies in Acústic and Ritme.



History of the winery

Albert Jané started his journey in D.O. Montsant creating Acústic Celler, a winery where he makes pure wines, ‘vinos de viña’, with little use of wood and a lot of work in the vineyard. With this same philosophy, in 2010 he started the project Ritme Celler in D.O.Q. Priorat.

The Ritme Celler winery, which is newly built, is located in the municipality of Vilella Alta, to the north. It is quite close to mythical towns of the area, such as Gratallops and Porrera.

He started with very little, renting some farms of Grenache and Carignan, and working with viticulturers from different towns of Porrera, Poboleda, Vilella Alta, Bellmunt, Gratallops... He currently has 7.5 hectares between owned and rented farms. In these surroundings, we can find magnificent old vineyards, especially of Grenache and Carignan (Samsó), generally aged between 35 and 80 years. The soils where these vineyards grow are quite poor. They are comprised of licorellas (slates) that are very stony and worn, which makes the vines ‘suffer’ and leads them to produce very small amounts of grapes (between 15 and 25 hectolitres per hectare). The climate conditions are also quite extreme, with very cold winters and very hot and dry summers. With all these peculiarities, the work in the vineyards is carried out with donkeys, since mechanical work cannot be performed. Therefore, most of the work on the field is manual.

Work philosophy

The philosophy of Ritme Celler is the same as that of Acústic in Montsant: to show the uniqueness, minerality and spiritual depth of D.O.Q. Priorat in their wines. As Albert says: “To show the rhythm of Priorat”. Ritme Celler’s work tools are very old vineyards of up to 100 years old, and slate soils that make the vines ‘suffer’, but that give them a special minerality. Its philosophy claims and seeks the roots and value of the traditional viticulture in comparison with the globalization of modern wines, full of make-up and technology. For Albert, this is a return to the roots and sometimes to the imperfection of local things, where the deepest environment of an old and untamable vineyard expressed itself, in return of fine, personal and elegant wines, that express the characteristics of the grape and the terroir with all naturalness.

Wines from Ritme Celler

Below is a the list of wines made by Ritme Celler:

Ritme Blanc is made with Maccabeu and White Grenache that have been manually harvested. This wine goes through cold maceration for 2 days. 30% of the must ferments in new French oak barrels, and the remaining 70% ferments in stainless steel deposits, both on their lees for 11 months. It has a yellowish colour with a greenish rim, aromas of ripe fruit, aniseed and wild flowers. In the mouth, it is fatty, with good acidity and very well balanced.

Etern is made with Grenache and Carignan from exceptional old vines that are between 70 and 95 years old, with low yields. Therefore, the production of this wine is very limited (1,660 bottles). The varieties are vinified in the traditional way, and they are aged for 12 months in new French barrels made of oak from Allier. On the nose, it is complex and concentrated, with ripe black fruit, balsamic notes, notes of undergrowth, leather, smoke, touches of slate and a spicy background. In the mouth, it is very powerful and pleasant at the same time. It is a full-bodied wine, ample and complex, with ripe and silky tannins. It has a long and slightly drying aftertaste, with nuances of black forest fruit, chocolate, balsamic notes, smoke, toffee, all on a mineral background.

Plaer is made with 20% Grenache and 80% Carignan from a selection of exceptional old vines that are between 40 and 60 years old, panted on slopes, in different vineyards of the area: El Molar, Bellmunt, Falset, Porrera, Poboleda, El LLoar and Torroja del Priorat, always on licorella (slate) soils, and at 300 to 650 metres of altitude. The grapes are harvested manually, selected in the vineyards, and then selected again at the winery. The wine is aged for 12 months in single-use French oak barrels. It has aromas of red fruit and spices, with very well integrated wood notes. In the mouth, it is tasty, fruity, with ripe tannins.

Ritme is made with Grenache and Carignan from old vineyards that range between 20 and 80 years old, planted on licorella (slate) soils. The harvest is carried out manually. The malolactic fermentation and the ageing are performed in French oak barrels with a light toasting for 10 months. This wine is not filtered or clarified to preserve its purest identity, so it may contain some sediments. It has aromas of red fruit and spices, with very well integrated wood notes. Tasty, fruity, with mature and polished tannins.