Domaine du Mas Blanc Banyuls 'Sostera'

‘Sostrera’ is the word for ‘solera’ in the local Catalan parlance of Banyuls. Dr. Gaston Parcé established the solera at Mas Blanc in 1925 with two layers of demi-muids (650-litre barrels) full of wine. The Domaine bottled the first wine from the solera in 1946. This commitment to extended aging within the Sostrera continues today. The wine is 100% Grenache noir (from cuttings brought from Château de Beaucastel), fortified in the usual manner of the estate.

Every few months, winemaker Jean-Michel Parcé tops up the barrels with older wines, creating a sort of ‘semi-oxidation.’ But a blending for bottling only happens every 5-10 years, when Jean-Michel blends from the second layer of demi-muids and adds older wines into the first layer of barrels. This measured approach means that these hallowed barrels capture the entire history of the Domaine.