Cruz de Alba takes ‘virtually homoeopathic’ approach

Ribera del Duero winery Cruz de Alba recently gained Demeter certification. Winemaker Sergio Ávila tells db about its biodynamic journey.

Cruz de Alba winemaker Sergio Ávila is passionate about working with nature and has just been awarded Demeter certification for biodynamic viticulture in his vineyards.

To obtain this classification, various aspects are evaluated, including the use and quality of biodynamic preparations, the management of energy and water resources, soil management, cultivation and the integration of farming into the ecosystem, as well as the promotion of biodiversity.

Speaking to db, Ávila reveals that, as a priority, he has always set out to “make honest and healthy wine that is balanced and full of character”. He has been farming his 40 hectares in the ‘golden mile’ of Ribera del Duero organically since 2006, taking the extra step to biodynamics just two years later – adopting a virtually homoeopathic approach to both the vineyards and the wines that are being produced.

The decision to pursue the certification – itself a guarantee for consumers that products come from biodynamic agriculture – was, according to Ávila, a way for him to show he could “support the vines’ immune system through non-chemical treatments”.

Ávila says he accomplished this by “strengthening the soil from within” and by “understanding the needs of the vine” to produce wines with a true sense of place.

The wines of Cruz de Alba are fresh, floral and juicy, balanced and elegant, harmonious and full of character. In making them, microvinifications to correspond to the division of the estate into sub-parcels, and only indigenous yeasts, present in the vineyard, are used.