After working for several multinational corporations and to his father’s amazement (who always linked winegrowing to hard life), Joan Ángel Lliberia decided to return to his hometown of Gandesa to work the family vineyards and launch his project. An agricultural engineer with a Master in Viticulture by the OIV, he focused initially on Garnacha Blanca, Terra Alta’s most distinctive grape, but has recently started to work successfully with red varieties such as Garnacha Tinta —which they refer to as “Fina”— and Garnacha Peluda with downy leaves.

The winery was named after the “vía Edetana”, the Roman road between the port of Dertosa (the current Tortosa in south Tarragona) and Cesaraugusta (Zaragoza in neighbouring Aragón).

Edétaria grows organically 70 hectares with high percentage of old vines which are destined to their top wines, and others rented to local farmers. The area has a large diversity of soils and vines are planted both on panal, the region’s trademark soil which originates from fossil dunes, as well as on gravel, clay, poor limestone or multi-layered loam.

Built in 2003, the winery lies on the road from Gandesa to Vilalba dels Arcs which connects La Plana (a low altitude area) with the higher plateau. The view is magnificent, with a sea of vines and the mountains of Pàndols Cavalls and Els Ports de Tortosa-Beceit natural park. Vineyards are planted on the lower area where they benefit from garbinada, a wind which brings sea breezes and humidity and tempers the high temperatures of summer.

The wines

Via Terra is their entry level range and includes a young white made from Garnacha Blanca, a rosé from Garnacha Peluda and a single-varietal Garnacha Tinta aged for six months. All of them retail at around €10.50 in Spain.

A step up in quality is Vía Edetana, which  has white and red versions (around €14.50 in Spain). The former is a 100% White Garnacha; the red blend includes Garnacha Tinta and Peluda and is aged for 10 months.

Next is Edetaria Selecció (around €26.50) which includes a Garnacha Blanca fermented in a 300-litre barrel and a red blend of Garnacha Peluda, Garnacha Fina and Cariñena which bears the first Vi de Finca Qualificada designation in DO Terra Alta.

Edetaria also produces a range of single vineyard wines sourced from very old plots, which used to be destined to Edètaria Selecció, and made in tiny quantities. Production barely exceeds 1,000 bottles and retail prices in Spain range between €40 and €55, but they are setting new standards for red wines in the area. Whereas La Pedrissa is a fantastic single varietal Cariñena, La Personal is made from Garnacha Peluda and La Genuïna is 100% Garnacha Fina grown on multi-coloured soils with different loam layers, locally known as tapàs. The Garnacha Blanca La Terrenal is sourced from a clay plot which used to go in the Edètaria Selecció blend -now Selecciò is a White Garnacha grown exclusively on panal soils. The top wine in the range is Lo Mas (€90), made from the oldest vines of Garnacha Peluda and Cariñena.