In Catalonia, winemakers are bringing back the historical term vi vermell to describe wines made from mixed grape varieties. The revival is visible in places including Badalona and Agullana, where producers are using the old name for blends that reflect traditional vineyard practice.
The term was common in medieval Catalonia and referred to what is now usually called vi negre. Joan Coromines’ Etymological and Complementary Dictionary of the Catalan Language notes that vermell was an older, legitimate term, while Francesc Eiximenis wrote in Lo Crestià about vins vermells de la terra, or local red wines, in the 14th century.
Historical records from the Jerónimos monasteries in Catalonia, Sant Jeroni de la Vall d’Hebron and Sant Jeroni de la Murtra, show that between 1481 and 1483 they produced and sold vi blanc, vermell i cuit, meaning white, red and cooked wine. That background is part of the case for using the older term again today.
In Badalona, the Vall de Betlem cooperative has brought winemaking back to the Sant Jeroni de la Murtra monastery, where vineyards had disappeared by the late 1960s. Its 2024 vintage produced 480 bottles of La Miranda, described as a vi vermell. The wine is a co-fermentation of Macabeu and Sumoll grapes, from 600 Macabeu vines and 300 Sumoll vines, with 10.5% alcohol, 24 hours of skin maceration and six months on lees in stainless steel tanks.
Other examples show the same approach in different parts of Catalonia. In Agullana, Alt Empordà, Salvador Batlle of Còsmic Vinyater makes Vi de Pagesos i Pageses, a vi vermell that blends white, black and grey grapes. The 2025 vintage includes Carinyena Blanca, Carinyena Negra, Garnatxa Grisa and Monestrell, and is sold in a three-litre bag-in-box format.
Batlle says the wine reflects a time when vineyards were not monocultural and many varieties grew together. He also says the format helps make wine more affordable for everyday consumption, while keeping a clear link to the land and its varieties. Another producer in Maresme is also making a vi vermell after moving from horticulture and ornamental flower farming into hospitality and sommelier studies in Vilafranca del Penedès.
