Moneu and Gonfaus join the 40 varieties revived over the past 30 years, seven of which display enological potential

The project to revive ancestral grape varieties, which Torres has been working on for over three decades, continues to bear fruit. Previously revived varieties like Querol, Garró and Selma Blanca are now joined by two red varieties with great enological promise. They also happen to be very heat and drought-tolerant, which makes them particularly interesting in terms of dealing with climate change.  

The varieties in question are called Moneu and Gonfaus. Torres has cultivated them on an experimental basis at its L'Aranyó vineyard in Borges Blanques, in the very heart of the Les Garrigues region of Lleida. A long process led to this point, beginning with the discovery of two old vines in 1998, which turned out to be unknown varieties. After passing a health check and undergoing reproduction, the grapevines were planted at different vineyards to see how they would adapt. The Torres family discovered that these two varieties express their greatest potential in arid climates and under extreme conditions.