Fredi Torres swapped the turntables for the vines, leaving a career as a DJ in Switzerland to return to his Iberian roots and become one of Catalonia's most thoughtful natural winemakers.
Backstory
The son of Galician farmers and fishermen, Fredi Torres studied viticulture and winemaking in Switzerland and worked harvests in Burgundy, Argentina, South Africa and Priorat. A bottle of Clos Mogador 1998 set him on his path, and in 2004 he launched his first Priorat project, Sao del Coster. In 2016 he founded Lectores Vini with partner Ollivier Jacq, the label under which his Priorat Classic now appears.
The Region
Fredi makes wine in four regions of Catalonia in northeastern Spain: Priorat, Montsant, Conca de Barbera and Penedes, seeking out old vines and quality plots across these distinct terroirs.
Vineyards and Farming
In Priorat the vines grow on terraced slopes of licorella, the region's distinctive schist soil. Fredi farms all his vineyards organically and along biodynamic principles, work he was doing in Priorat long before it became common. The grapes are largely Mediterranean varieties: Grenache (Garnatxa) and Carignan (Carinena) dominate the Priorat reds, with smaller amounts of Syrah and Macabeu, plus varieties like Trepat in Conca de Barbera.
Winemaking
Fredi Torres winemaking is non-interventionist. All ferments run on native yeasts, there is no fining and little to no filtering, and the only addition is a small amount of sulfur at bottling. The goal is wines with bright acidity, pure fruit and lower alcohol than is typical for the region.
The Wines
The Fredi Torres Priorat Classic, a Grenache-led blend with Carignan, Syrah and a touch of Macabeu, is the calling card, joined by reds and whites from Montsant, Conca de Barbera and Penedes under the Lectores Vini label.
