Mallorca

About Cati Ribot (Ve d’Avior)

• Background: Cati Ribot, a third-generation winemaker from the Galmés i Ribot family, began working with her father Jaume in 2004 in Santa Margalida, northeast Mallorca. Initially focused on conventional wines with international varieties (Syrah, Chardonnay), she trained as a sommelier in Barcelona in 2008, discovering natural wines and connecting with Catalonia’s natural wine scene. This inspired a shift to organic (certified 2012) and biodynamic practices (since 2014, guided by Joan Rubió). In 2019, she took over the family bodega, stopped using sulfur, and launched Ve d’Avior (“from the past” in Mallorquin), focusing on indigenous Mallorcan grapes. She collaborates with Charlie Prymaka (ex-Terroir, Les Caves de Pyrene) and other local winemakers like Eloi Cedó and Jaume Prats.

• Wines: Cati specializes in natural, low-intervention wines, including still reds, whites, rosés, and pét-nats, using forgotten Mallorcan varieties like Escursac, Callet, Fogoneu, Manto Negro, Gorgollassa, Callet Negrella, Giró Ros, Prensal Blanc, and Malvasia de Banyalbufar. Key wines include:

  • Escursac Tinto (100% Escursac): Red, carbonic maceration in steel for 20 days, aged 4 months in terracotta amphorae, moderate alcohol, delicate red fruit, soft tannins. From 6 hectares, a rare variety replanted in 2006. (€21, MORE Natural Wine)

  • Cambuix 2022 (Callet, Manto Negro, Escursac): 1-liter red, 6-day steel maceration, partial aging in 500L barrels, light and persistent, born after a 2020 hailstorm.

  • Bosquet 2024 (Escursac, Fogoneu): Pét-nat via ancestral method, biodynamic, fresh and vertical.

  • Malvasia Blanco 2022 (Malvasia): White, fermented in stainless steel, aged 4 months in 500L oak, cool-climate Chardonnay-like with lemon, almond, and subtle herbs.

  • Son Llebre, Eusarac: Experimental wines, often blends or unique expressions.

• Production: Farms ~6 hectares of calcareous-clay soils, with Escursac as a flagship (1.2 hectares planted in 2006, 5 more in 2020). Uses small vessels, ceramic tinajas, and minimal sulfur pre-bottling. Biodynamic practices include cover crops, Mallorquin sheep for weed control, and apple saplings for biodiversity (aiming to produce cider). Output is small, with wines like Cambuix and Escursac in 1-liter formats, emphasizing rarity and authenticity.

• Style: Clean, fresh, and terroir-driven, with Mediterranean scrub, floral, and herbaceous notes. Known for reviving forgotten grapes, Cati’s wines are vegan-friendly, exuberant, and reflective of Mallorca’s heritage.