Ca'n Verdura "Ca'n Xicatlà" Blanc de Mantonegro '21

When Tomeu Llabrés started Ca'n Verdura, his garage winery (literally - he makes his wines in a renovated auto garage), he intended to showcase the rich history of Mallorca, its native grapes and old vineyards, the sort of distinct place with deep roots and rich culture too often papered over by a runaway tourism industry.

A decade and a half on, and that inspiration hasn't changed. Yet another unique wine that speaks beautifully of the specificity of its terroir and history is his Ca'n Xicatlà, a wine made from an old vine parcel of Mantonegro Cabellis, a grape born from a rare genetic mutation that turned the red Mantonegro to a white grape. These grapes are genetically unstable, and vintage to vintage produce a mix of differently hued grapes even on the same vine. As such, each successive vintage is intensely unique - even the color can shift from a clean lemon to a richly tinted orange. The 2021 brings with it a tint of delicate salmon, and a burst of fresh clementine and apricot. However, there's much more than just fruit here. A rose hip floral lift hovers above an ever-so-slightly oxidative almond character, braced with a brief flare of smoke after 10 months aging in barrel. It's a rich wine, fittingly for a vine that hasn't quite fully shed its red origins, but there's enough acidity on the palate, which coupled with an insistent minerality leaves this as a particular vivid expression of the Mallorca you won't see in a tourism board pamphlet.