Interview with Miguel A Torres

Miguel Torres is a name that requires no introduction to the wine world. The Spanish winemaker that exports wine to more than 150 countries, making wines across numerous wine estates in Spain, Chile and the USA, is known for its high quality and value for money wines. I had the exclusive opportunity to interview one of my icons in the wine world, Miguel A Torres, President of Miguel Torres S.A. during a leisurely lunch at their 14th century traditional Catalan country house restored to a restaurant on the Mas Rabell estate of Torres. The chat became progressively interesting as the courses that had been exotically paired with the wines came to the table. 

It is my pleasure to share this conversation with the esteemed  readers of Guns to Gewurztraminer.

Sharing lunch with the man himself: raising a toast with Mr. Miguel A Torres

Q: Congratulations on Torres being adjudged the Most Admired Wine Brand of the World for 2014 by Drinks International magazine. What is your next milestone?

A: Thank you, any recognition coming our way is obviously delightful but we have consciously never been vying for titles. It also remains a fact that in the previous years, somebody else received this honour, and in the coming years, it may well belong to someone else. What is important for us is to sincerely keep doing what we are best at and that will be our effort.

Q: I have seen the "holy trinity" of Parellada, Macabeo and Xarel lo grapes in your estates. Yet, I am intrigued why Torres has not thought of producing Cava?

One of the expansive cellars at the Torres main winery at Pacs del Penedès

A: To tell you frankly, the first batch of Cava is ageing in our cellars as we talk. The project is being closely supervised by my daughter, Mireia, who is crafting a super-premium wine that will be released in the 1st half of 2016. We have waited all these years, as we wanted to adequately research the optimum production methods, even though we have already gained quite some experience in Chile, making the rosé sparkling "Santa Digna Estelado" from the País varietal.

Q: We are in the Mas Rabell estate, and in the vineyards I saw some varietals that do not have a name but a number. Could you please elaborate on this?

A: We have been consciously trying to revive many of the native Catalan grape varietals that have been lost into oblivion over a period of time on various accounts. They have a number, because they most probably never had a name. The collection you saw forms part of a project that we started in the eighties to recuperate “disappeared” Catalan grape varietals, some of which have their provenance in the nineteenth century.

These “disappeared” varietals were actually more or less hidden in nature, often in the middle of nowhere. Mostly, natural barriers like mountains protected them from being attacked by phylloxera for more than a century.

To identify them, we worked together with the Universities in Tarragona and Montpellier to determine whether a “lost” varietal was really unique because sometimes, it could well be that it already existed elsewhere in the world. Until today, we have discovered 32 “lost” varietals in Catalonia, but we have registered only 8 of them, because we believe that these have the potential to make a top quality wine. The latest “lost” varietal, “Querol”, was named after the municipality where it was found.

'Lost' grape varietals under revival at Torres' Mas Rabell estate

The interiors of Mas Rabell restaurant

Q: International grape varietals being increasingly cultivated in many world regions, including your own vineyards, are these native grape varietals under a threat of extinction?

A: Not at all! On the contrary, since the last thirty years, our priority has been to nurture the native grape varietals irrespective of the international varietals plantings that we also have. The aim is to protect our patrimoine (heritage) which is centuries old and I am determined to see that it is handed down to the next generations.

Q: Torres seems to emphasize sustainability. What is your vision on this and how is it implemented?

A: (Gestures the Maitre to fetch something) The whole idea is to be a nurturing custodian to the valuable resources at our disposal. We want to pass these on to the next generations - if not augmented then at least in an undepleted state. At the same time we need to be compassionate enough to give something back to the society in the present day.

(The Maitre arrives with a mounted graphic) This is our company’s DNA, describing what makes us tick as a winery, as a company. The 8 core elements are People – Ecology – Fair Trade – Giving Back to Society – Clients – R&D – Closeness to End Consumers and a Close Knit Family Company, which are self-explanatory.

You might have noticed these in some form or the other during your visit, but "Giving Back to Society" is something that I will explain. Each year we are participating in numerous social projects around the world to create better living conditions for underprivileged women and children in our society. This is through the Miguel Torres Foundation which was created in 1986 and is presided my wife, Waltraud Maczassek Torres.

In Guadalajara, Mexico we just laid the first stone for a refuge home for neglected and "at risk" girls, with a contribution of €275,000. In Anantpur, India we have contributed towards education and housing for children, and created a home for abandoned women.

Q: The Torres family revived the wine fortunes of Penedès, post phylloxera and the world wars. And boldly grew their footprint into other Spanish wine regions and overseas. Can we expect to see more expansion?

A: Internationally we have had vineyards in Chile and the US since long. In Chile, we have recently expanded to the southern part with a 200 hectare estate with a nearby river assuring water supply in Itata, which is very well suited to Cabernet Sauvignon. Chile has a favourable climate for producing organic wines as the region does not get rains in the summer, hence the absence of many vine diseases. So we are betting very strongly on Chile, and the project is being overseen by my son, Miguel Torres Maczassek.

Speaking of Spain, we have vineyards in the Denominación de Origen (denominated origins) of Penedès, Conca de Barbera, Priorat, Jumilla and Costers del Segre. Our idea is to represent the best wine areas of Spain, bringing out the uniqueness of each region. We have just bought the winery which we had hired to produce our Verdeo wine from Verdejo varietal in Rueda. In Rias Baixas in the Galicia region, my daughter Mireia, is progressing very well with our project of Albariño wine called "Pazo das Bruxas".

Q: You have been doing business in India since 2001 and have a unique partnership with Prestige Wines & Spirits. The Indian wine industry has recently seen some international giants like Moët Hennessey set up local ventures. Could we possibly expect to see a Torres footprint in India?

A: The fact that every state of India has different rules related to the alcohol trade is a major hindrance, and maybe it is time to change to promote healthy competition that will eventually benefit the local wine industry. It is difficult to make long-term predictions, but the basic premise of our production philosophy is "Focus". We prefer to stay committed to the regions where we are already present. We would not want to start producing wines in every possible region of the world. Even within Spain, we will not venture into the most famous fortified wine, Sherry.

(This interview has been published as lead story in the inaugural issue of wine newsletter vino india - news views and reviews from the market for wine in India -launched this month)

Wines sampled in the luncheon  with Mr. Miguel A Torres (laid out in the sequence of food courses from L-R)

(Main Course) Iberian pork tenderloin with plum sauce served with Cordillera Cariñena 2009  wine was a gourmet delight