Wine description
Don Joseph is the name of our ancestor, written
exactly as mentioned in the purchase deed
through which Casa Los Frailes was acquired at
public auction in 1771. Sweet wines have a long
tradition in our area, and with this name, we
wanted to express our gratitude to our ancestor
for his legacy.
It is a naturally sweet late-harvest wine, aged for
an average of 3 years. In the cellar, which dates
back to the 18th century, we have barrels and
demijohns aging Monastrell from different
vintages (for over 30 years) with the aim of
producing rancid wine (like Fondillón, both dry
and sweet). This allows us to select barrels from
different soleras whose evolution doesn’t tend
towards oxidative rancid wine (like tawny) but
towards a juicier and fruitier sweet wine, which
is what we aim for in Don Joseph, expressing the
Mediterranean sweetness.

Soils
Single-plot vineyard ‘La Loma.’ Situated at an
altitude of 650 meters on a hillside, where the
wind blows freely and the morning
Mediterranean dew dries quickly. The soils
here are limestone-rich with a surface covered
in abundant stones, allowing moisture and
water reserves to be retained deep below the
surface rather than on top. After several years
of experience, when conditions are favorable,
this vineyard allows us to naturally sun-dry
Monastrell grapes, preventing them from
rotting. The vineyard’s age is 55 years, and it
is cultivated using dry farming techniques

Vinification
If weather conditions allow, the Monastrell
grape clusters are left to raisin until late
October, when the vines reach a potential
alcohol content of 19 to 21%. Spontaneous
fermentation of the whole clusters begins.
Depending on the vintage, daily treading lasts
between 15 and 25 days. After pressing, the
juice is transferred to 700 and 500-liter French
oak barrels where a slow fermentation
continues for 3-4 months. Eventually, yeast
populations are depleted, and fermentation
stops, resulting in a high sugar concentration
(140-160 g/l)

Several vintages

Don Joseph monastrell comes from the last 4
vintages in which late harvesting was possible.
It comprises 15% from the 2022 vintage, 20%
from 2021, 55% from 2020, and 10% from 2018.
These four vintages were characterized by a
dry end harvest, from mid-September to late
October, allowing the Monastrell grapes to
mature and raisin slowly on the vine without
rotting.

Technical information
Variety
100% Monastrell
Yield: 600 kgs/hectare

Dry agriculture
Organic certificate

Robert Parker

Alcohol: 13%
Residual sugar: 160gr/litro