July 26th & 27th

Irene Alemany and Laurent Corrio share a passion for winemaking — and for each other. Partners in marriage and the vineyard, theirs is a love story, rich with personal adventure, family, the study of oenology and respect for the French tradition of winemaking. These influences ultimately manifest themselves in the bottle. “Our wine is as soft as a gentle kiss, but one where you end by passionately biting your partner’s lip,” says Irene.

The couple, who met at the University of Burgundy in Dijon, apprenticed in vineyards in France and California. But the turning point was a stopover at Irene’s parents’ home in Penedès on their way back from the United States. It was there that Irene’s father insisted they use the family vines to begin their own operation. The first harvest was in 1999, the first bottling in 2002. From the start, they followed the French school, remaking the classics in their own way.

Their wines — the valuable everyday cuvee Pas Curtei and the notably profound Sot Lefriec — both blend Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Carinyena grapes. Both wines reveal an allegiance to the values of balance, measured reserve, natural process and a sense of place. These are wines that could have come from only Alemany i Corrio. “What we want to accomplish,” says Irene, “is that when people taste our wines there is something in the soul of the wine that talks to them and will make them remember.”