This wine takes its name from the village of Raimat in Catalonia, a village so dedicated to wine that its streets are named after grape varieties. Bodegas Raimat own the castle in the village and their innovative wines are so good that in 1988 they were granted Denominación de Origen for the area under the name Costers del Segre. Although Raimat sounds like a Spanish brand of washing machine, from a marketing point of view we think it was lucky that they didn’t set up in either of the neighbouring towns of insulting-sounding Sucs or geographically-confusing Buenos Aires.
Raimat offers a range of sustainable and innovative wines, successfully combining the best of New World winemaking techniques with traditional Spanish methods. Established in 1914 in the dry, inhospitable conditions of Lleida, Raimat is the backbone of D.O. Costers del Segre. One of the youngest (1988) and most innovative DOs in Spain, Costers del Segre enjoys a continental climate with a lot of sunshine, low precipitation and a marked contrast between day and night time temperatures. With its 2,245 hectares of vineyards, Raimat is the largest family-owned single vineyard in Europe.
The Raimat winemaking team has an impressive amount of international winemaking experience. The team is passionate about quality and attention to detail and combines the best of New World winemaking techniques with traditional Spanish methods. Every grape for Raimat's wines comes from the winery's own vineyards which are all certified as sustainable (EU compliant certification). The winery believes that working sustainably is not only good for the environment but ultimately produces the best quality wines. The Australian Head Winemaker Mark Nairn grew up working on his family’s small winery estate, just south of Perth, in Western Australia. He then moved to South Australia and studied oenology at Roseworthy College. Once he had completed his degree in oenology, he started to work around the world, making wine for the English wine trade in countries as varied as South Africa, California, France, Spain, Italy, Greece, Portugal, Cyprus, Morocco, Czech Republic and Australia. Working in these wine producing countries gave him great experience of the different grape varieties, wine styles and production methods used around the world. He moved to Spain at the beginning of 2007 to take the position of Chief Winemaker with Bodegas Raimat.
The grapes are harvested at night, then cooled to 10ºC and then destemmed. The Chardonnay and the Albariño were vinified separately throughout. The must was kept for 48hrs at a temperature of 8ºC to bring on natural clarification. The clear must was then racked into stainless steel tanks with fermentation taking place at 14 and 16ºC. The Chardonnay and the Albariño were then blended to attain this wine’s characteristic style. All these procedures were carried out with the utmost care in order to prevent oxidation of the wine and conserve the full freshness of its fruity aromas. Finally, the wine was filtered and then ready for bottling. No egg products used in the winemaking process.
The result is a pale yellow and brilliant wine with greenish hues and aromas of tropical fruits, orange and apricot blossom. The Chardonnay gives notes of tropical fruit, apricot and peach whereas the Albariño adds hints of apricot blossom and a long citrus finish. This is great with white meats, fresh fish, paella and pasta dishes.
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