Collection: Bodegas La Canetana

Bodegas La Canetana is a project of Flemish winemakers in Spain. In 2014, Tine Decorte and Peter Van Coppenolle took over a 20-year-old bodega, with approximately 4 hectares of vineyards, in Canet lo Roig. The bodega had not been active for years, the vineyards somewhat neglected.

In the meantime, both have completed a winemaking training and a 4-year training as sommelier. In 2021 they look back on some exciting years: with a passion that got out of hand, their lives took a completely different turn. They prune and harvest themselves and are also the winemakers themselves.

The project underwent a whole new approach, and was named Bodegas La Canetana, after a resident of Canet lo Roig, where the vineyards and bodega are located.

Terroir and pruning method

Canet Lo Roig is a small village of 600 inhabitants in the Baix Maestrat region, in the province of Castellon. It is located south of the mouth of the Ebro, on the Mediterranean Sea. Between Tarragona and Valencia, at an altitude of 300 meters.

Mediterranean climate with hot summers and relatively cool nights. Dry winds from the mountains keep the vineyards healthy and create a micro-climate. The soil consists of sandy loam soil, with a lot of rock. This unique terroir gives the wines of La Canetana a nice spiciness. The vineyards of La Canetana, with 20 year old grapes, were pruned according to the classical method “en vaso” (the typical low-cut “gloves”) but were completely converted according to the “espaldera" system (double guyot), with guide wires.

Varieties

Originally the vineyard consisted of a lot of tempranillo, garnacha, merlot, cabernet sauvignon and various smaller quantities of white grapes, from albariño to muskat. Tempranillo is not really suited to the Mediterranean climate, and neither are white grape varieties such as albariño, which are typical of Galicia. Therefore, these plants were replaced by 6000 new plants, mainly monastrell, marselan, cabernet franc and garnacha blanca. With the latter, winemakers in the adjacent Terra Alta region make beautiful white wines.