Ca'n Verdura "Supernova" Blanc, Mallorca, Spain 2023

FROM DE MAISON:

THE WINE: 100% Moll. Supernova Blanc is Ca’n Verdera’s premier white wine from the indigenous moll grape grown in the cal vermell soils, consisting of red, iron-rich clay and limestone with small and medium-sized galets. The flagship ​Supernova Blanc originates from the best plots of ​old-vine moll from bush-trained vineyards planted in the 1950s in the villages surrounding Binissalem, including the village of Santa Maria, which are considered the finest vineyards in the area. Grapes come from the Cas Pastor, Cas Verd, Son Borrás, and Plà de Buc ​plots, planted at 130 meters. This complex island white is medium bodied, with a profile of citrus, chamomile, fresh herbs, fennel, and white fruit notes, which provide great freshness. Wines are made with low intervention and minimal sulfur at bottling. Production is necessarily very limited, as every bottle in this garage winery is sold each vintage.​

THE PRODUCER: It’s fair to say that the new generation of wine producers on the Balearic’s largest island, Mallorca, is making an impact, much like the name of Ca’n Verdura’s flagship cuvée Supernova implies. With over fourteen million tourists visiting Mallorca each year, in recent times, the island was indeed in danger of losing its unique cultural heritage and a rich trove of indigenous grape varieties to international grapes planted in neat rows at wineries designed as vanity projects. The cost of vineyard land has soared, with luxury vacation homes replacing old vineyards without regard for the region’s unique cultural tradition of planting vines in polyculture. Such is the price of living in paradise where the story is similar to other islands across the Mediterranean, which struggle with the mixed-blessings of balancing the success of international tourism with the retention of the cultural traditions that created the demand in the first place.

However, all is not lost. The seeds of Mallorca’s rebirth lie within the new generation of winemakers, farmers, and chefs who are diligently cataloging, recuperating, replanting, and exalting the thousands of years of history pre-dating the boon of modern tourism. Like a Supernova, the modern wine and culinary scene of Mallorca are rapidly reviving and celebrating local, ecologically-sustainable food and wine production, which is both culturally relevant and gastronomically compelling. Starting with modest budgets and against the odds, our protagonists are now leading the conversation about the future of conservation and agriculture on the island.

Enter Tomeu Llabrés, working in self-described viticultura en miniatura, and his visionary work with the indigenous mantonegro grape at Ca’n Verdura Viticultores. In 2012 he founded his micro-winery in a former auto garage at the center of the ancient village of Binissalem, located in the north-central portion of Mallorca. Through a steadfast focus on the mantonegro grape, Tomeu has demonstrated that this ancient variety has incredible potential, creating some of the Balearic region’s most ground-breaking wines. In recent tastings, mantonegro has drawn flavor comparisons to another island grape native to Italy, nerello mascalese. Placing indigenous grapes in context can be tricky. Still, there certainly seems to be a similar renaissance of native varieties in Mallorca, and one can draw comparisons to what’s occurring in Sicily.