Costador Terroirs Mediterranis is the work of Joan Franquet, who grew up in an olive oil family near Priorat and worked alongside his father on the farm from a young age. He trained as a sommelier in 2009 before turning to the Conca de Barbera, where his partner is from, to build an estate devoted to old, almost forgotten Catalan vines.
The Region
Costador lies in the Conca de Barbera in central Catalonia, near Tarragona and not far from Barcelona, on a singular mountain. The vines sit high, between roughly 400 and 800 meters of altitude, where cool air helps preserve freshness.
Vineyards and Farming
For Costador, Franquet looks after old vineyards, most of them between 60 and 110 years old, planted with indigenous and sometimes nearly extinct varieties such as Sumoll, Xarel.lo, Trepat, Garnatxa, and Chenin Blanc. The land is cultivated on organic principles, with most vineyards certified, and he also draws on biodynamic and minimal-intervention practice.
Winemaking
Costador fermentation always starts spontaneously with wild, native yeasts. Franquet ferments and ages across clay amphorae, several-use old oak barrels, and stainless steel, leaning heavily on amphorae for his Metamorphika range. The aim is to let these rare grapes and the mountain terroir come through with as little intervention as possible.
The Wines
The amphora-driven Costador Metamorphika bottlings, made from varietal lots of Sumoll, Trepat, Garnatxa, Xarel.lo, Macabeu, and Chenin Blanc, are the heart of the range, alongside cuvees such as La Fassina and Presa Romana, all expressions of high-altitude Catalan vines worked by hand.
