Victor Fernández de Manzanos’s mornings start out in a pretty typical way. He checks the stock markets, reads the newspaper, and enjoys breakfast over a few emails. But his afternoons? Well, he spends them among millions of grapes as one of the winemakers at Bodegas Manzanos. We caught up with the Spanish wine guru for a glimpse of life in the vineyard, along with some holiday-entertaining advice – which you can totally put to use with our festive bottles from WSJwine from The Wall Street Journal. No matter which case of vino your tablescape calls for, three bottles of this winery’s celebrated 92-point Los Hermanos Manzanos Reserva Rioja will also be showing up at your doorstep. Cheers!
Rue La La: Describe a day at Manzanos.
Victor Fernández de Manzanos: Most days, we take a stroll through the vineyards so we can appreciate the evolution of the place and decide on things like how to irrigate. It’s like taking care of a houseplant – except there are millions of them – so we devote a lot of time to making sure we have the best fruit for our wines.
Rue La La: What’s your best holiday-entertaining tip?
Victor Fernández de Manzanos: Match the table décor with the wine labels. A white and gold table always goes well with the garnet and ruby-red colors of the wine in glasses. Plan on having one bottle of wine per couple, and try to open the bottles a half hour before you pour.
Rue La La: How long does it take for grapes to become wine-ready?
Victor Fernández de Manzanos: The cycle starts in April and goes until late August or September. Then we prepare for harvest. However, it takes a whole year for the vine to make grapes; it sometimes feels too long. We know that there are some places that have two harvests a year – we plan to move there one day.
Rue La La: What are some of the smells that accompany winemaking?
Victor Fernández de Manzanos: You find spices, nuts, chocolate, and even pastries. The winery is four floors underground, and then we have three floors of offices. There are some days that the smell is so strong, it feels as if you are tasting instead of smelling.
Rue La La: What is it like running a business with such a tight-knit community?
Victor Fernández de Manzanos: It’s quite a friendly work environment. Some of our workers even worked for my father. We have an entire family that has been with us for 30 years now. We have seen them grow through every single step in life, and I suppose they’ve accompanied us on that journey as well.
Rue La La: Why did you name the three bonus bottles “Los Hermanos Manzanos”?
Victor Fernández de Manzanos: Well, hermanos means “brothers.” And my 25-year-old brother, David, now handles the bottling. He started in the winery after graduating with a degree in Industrial Engineering, and he’s been in charge of organizing production ever since. He’s really improved all the processes and practices. I’m really lucky to be working with my brother – he’s my best friend, and he’s very good at what he does.
Rue La La: What is Manzanos’s mission?
Victor Fernández de Manzanos: We love to share our history, our passion for what we do. My family has been making wine since 1890, and we’re always looking to improve quality. Our mission is to create happiness so that all our customers associate one of our bottles with their best moments in life.
Rue La La: What is it about winemaking that you would love wine drinkers to know?
Victor Fernández de Manzanos: It will not make you rich, or not quickly at least, but it is the best business you can work in. Isn’t selling something that you are passionate about the best possible thing to do in life?
By Claudia Williams, Staff Writer
