Wine route through D.O. Montsant

Bell Cros is the name of the winery and also the name given to the wines produced by this new project. Bell means “beautiful” in Catalan, and Cros is an old Catalan word that refers to the valley, in this case the Montsant valley (Tarragona).

Bell Cros is the joint effort by a team that began with the Swedish couple, Ann and Peter Skoglund, entrepreneurs who fulfilled their dream of having vineyards and making wine in one of the most idyllic wine regions in the world. What’s more, the project is headed by the prestigious winemaker Joan Asens,

The vineyards in the DO Montsant are often small due to hereditary laws. Much of the population has been moving from rural areas to larger towns and cities for many years, making investment and regeneration difficult. In its first year, Bell Cros acquired six small vineyards. The conversion into a larger, totally eco-friendly winery began immediately. The paradox is that more volume is needed to be able to focus on improving quality through more select and smaller crops.

Although Bell Cros is new to the world of wine, its vineyards have been bearing fruit for years. Most of their vineyards were planted a long time ago, and are between 40 and 70 years old. These older vineyards reflect the soil in which they grow. There is always a special part of the DO Montsant in each bottle of Bell Cros. The main focus of Bell Cros is the Grenache and Carignan varieties, typical of the DO Montsant and the neighbouring DOQ Priorat. These grapes form the backbone of their wine production.

Arranged visits for individuals and groups on working days, weekends and holidays.

The Quinoa restaurant is located in the centre of the capital of Priorat, Falset. It is one of the few restaurants in the Tarragona region that uses only locally sourced, organic and seasonal products. Thus, in the restaurant’s cuisine we find poultry, fresh eggs, Siurana oil, vegetables, cheeses, flour, sea salt, Prades potatoes, rice from the Delta del Ebre... The restaurant’s owner, Matías Fernández, has significant professional training, and has been in charge of Quinoa for more than 15 years. The maitre is Katty Araujo, while Daniel Lucas is the sommellier who takes charge of the wine list, which includes about 160 wines, most of them from Priorat and Montsant.