Ribera del Duero’s founding winery Bodegas Protos has made its first foray into DO Cigales with a brand new winery specifically designed for high quality rosé wine production.
It forms the rosé wine addition to Protos’ prestigious estates in Ribera del Duero and Rueda, which specialise in red and white wines respectively.
Protos began construction in Cubillas de Santa Maria – the site of Cigales’ most emblematic soils – in 2018, completing the winery in 2020.
Why Rosé?
“This category keeps increasing year after year, reaching 9.6% of the world’s total wine production,” said Carlos Villar, Director General at Bodegas Protos.
“And 80% of all its sales are divided between France, Spain, USA and Italy, so we see a great opportunity to present really good quality wines.”
Custom-built for Rosé Winemaking
In Cigales, Protos has embarked upon its most technical winery design yet, with every detail geared towards rosé winemaking:
- On-site laboratory to analyse color and must quality in real time
- Gravity-flow system for grape reception, protecting fruit aromas and must quality
- Nitrogen generator to displace oxygen with inert gas, guarding against oxidation
- Roller separation table to remove plant debris so that only fruit reaches the press
- Tubular exchangers for cooling grapes and must to 8ºC (preventing early fermentation, preserving aromas and controlling color extraction)
- Separate vinification of must according to quality, color, variety and parcel, allowing for precise blending by oenologists
DO Cigales: Old Vines, Ideal Climate
“We have invested in a region that has a long tradition of making rosés, with great terroirs and soils – very similar to the Valladolid part of Ribera del Duero,” said Villar.
- DO Cigales, in the heart of Castilla y Léon, has higher altitudes
(650-800m) and a cooler, dry climate – ideal for creating structured rosé wines with balanced acidity.
- Cigales’ old vines (average age of 42 years old) produce concentrated and expressive wines with marked personality.
- Cigales permits a wide variety of grapes in rosé production, including red Tempranillo, Garnacha and Syrah, plus white Albillo, Verdejo and Sauvignon Blanc. This allows our oenologists to blend the best characteristics from French and indigenous varieties to create unique and complex rosé wines.
2020 Vintage
“We harvested early to preserve maximum aromatic potential in the wines, rather than deep colors,” said Villar. “It has been an optimal vintage, with great health and balance between the sugars and acidity of our different grape varieties – providing fresh and highly aromatic wines.”
Released in January 2021
The inaugural vintage of Protos Cigales Rosé will be released onto the market in January 2021 – after the wines have aged on their fine lees.
Protos Cigales Rosé will be made available in all of the 100 countries worldwide where Protos wines are currently sold.
