The Story of Bodegas Toto Marques in DOQ Priorat and Prades

Bodegas Toto Marques

Is an initiative of Toto Marqués and his family who lost their hearts to the Aerea Prades and Priorat many years ago. The love for Wine accelerated about 14 years ago during never-ending wine discussions with locals which resulted in the start of Bodegas Toto Marqués. In short: Toto was offered an opportunity to buy his first Vineyard followed by a handful more of them in Priorat as well in his preferred hometown Prades.
Nowadays Toto Marques owns the Vineyards: La Pleta and Les Foreses in DOQ Priorat and Les Vinyes, Els Estepans, and Els Molinets in Prades.
All of them run by his son Guillermo Marqués and his sister Judit Marqués supported by the close team members: Albert, Joan, Jerreh and Mochine.

DOQ Priorat and Prades

Where Priorat holds the highest reignition in the Spanish Wine hierarchy being a DOQ and Prades which is the neighbor of Priorat which does not hold a DO or DOQ status. This does not mean the Wine is of less quality. Prades has a slightly different ground structure and with lower and fewer steep slopes, which converts to a different taste of wine. The main reason why Prades does not have a DO or DOQ status is that not 100% of the lands available are used to produce wine.

14 years ago

Toto started about 14 years ago by rebuilding the very old Vineyards into a modern and biological version which was needed since wine strains have a lifespan of about 30 years and needed to renewed. The main goal was and is keeping all the old characteristics of the Vineyards which is dating back to the 1100s. It took 8 years of Patients, investment, testing, and perfecting the wine to finally release the first wine being the DOQ Priorat Shirus 2015 and the DOQ Priorat Omus 2015. Where for Prades it took a year longer for the first release being the Prades 950 2016 which refers to the altitude of the Vineyard. The release dates of the finally bottled wines ready to drink are years after the date of picking the grapes. Do remember: preparing a Vineyard takes years and to process grapes to great wines is a slow process as well. But the result, in this case, can be called a success.

The Town Poboleda, DOQ Priorat

Toto Marqués Vineyard DOQ Priorat

The Prades Vineyard overlooking DOQ Priorat

About the Toto Marqués Priorat Vineyards

In the surroundings of the town, Poboleda is the vineyards of La Pleta and Les Foreses situated. Two vineyards that are part of the Priorat territory holding the DOQ status in Spain. A variety of grapes are cultivated on these two farms: Grenache, Syrah, Cariñena, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Merlot. The strains have up to 30 years of life, they provide maturity and structure for the Toto Marques wines Omus and Shirus. Its characteristic terrain of slate stone, also known as llicorella, distributed in terraces, and its vines with history makes the Toto Family feel very proud of their vineyards.

The Village Poboleda, Priorat

From the unparalleled place, Priorat rises Poboleda, a town with moderate slopes and a place where the Siurana River passes by with no more than 370 inhabitants and 14 square kilometers. The meaning of its name, “Bosque de Chopos or Álamos”, says a lot about what Poboleda is, a place surrounded by particular vegetation. Poboleda is a small town founded in 1170 that awaits many stories and where we can see historical architecture from the 18th and 19th centuries. A place to disconnect and enjoy.

Technical sheet of the DOQ Priorat Vineyards

• Appellation: D.O.Q. Priorat
• Production: 100% Organic
• Type of wine: Red Wine
• Varieties: Red Grenache, Cariñea, Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon
• Alcohol grade: 15% vol. varied depending on the year
• Vineyard origin: La Pleta and Les Foreses, Priorat, Tarragona, Catalunya, Spain
• Age of vineyard: Dating back to the 12th Century replanted planted in 2011.
• Winemaking: The Traditional Method
• Harvest grape: September – October
• Spontaneous fermentation: Maceration for 29 days
• Aging: 12 months in French Oak Barrels
• Bottle: Bordelaise 75 cl.
• Stopper: Natural Cork (45×24 mm.)

About the Prades Vineyards

The vineyards are located in Prades at 950 meters high, a symbol of the most natural and characteristic part of the area. It’s the place where three of them in a total of five vineyards of Toto Marques stand.

The Vineyards: Les Vinyes, Els Estepans, and Els Molinets are the 3 that give the origin to varieties like Grenache, Grenache White, Syrah, Pinot Noir, Merlot, Riesling, and Xenin which are used in the different wines of the House of Toto Marques.

These Vineyards extend from the Poblet Forest to the town of Prades itself.

Les Vinyes has a great history dating back to the 12th century. However, Els Molinets and Els Estepans stand out for their youth.

Toto Marques and his family invested since 2007 in these vineyards starting with exploring, planting, testing, and releasing the first wines from the year 2015 being the ‘Prades 950’.

• All Wines by Toto Marques are Limited Editions and come in Numbered Bottles of 75 cl.

The Lovely Town Prades

One of the Bodegas Toto Marqués Prades Vineyard

Toto and Guillermo Marqués happy with first Won Price

About the Toto Marqués Prades Bodega

In the heart of the small town of Prades, Tarragona, Catalunya, Spain is situated one of two wineries of Toto Marqués. It’s here where the Prades 950 wine is made and here Toto and his family take care of the grapes during the two needed fermentations and where they deposit the wine in French Oak Barrels where it is aged for 12 months.

In the first stage, they age the Grenache, Syrah, Pinot Noir, Merlot in Stainless Steel Barrels. This is needed since the different Grapes have each a different time to mature before they blend them together in French Oak Barrels.

The winery is run almost entirely by family, the human touch is more than present with all the manual labor needed of all the processes, it’s how the family can treat the product with delicacy. All done the traditional way and according to the strict ecologic rules.

The Village Prades

Prades is a town of history and charm, whose origin dates back to Prehistory, and which symbolizes the pride of wines. A place to lose yourself and contemplate the beauty that surrounds you and enjoy what it offers.

Prades is a symbol of identity for the Toto Marques Family. It’s where it all started as being the place of residence that opened the doors to a new world. A place where anecdotes forged over the years, monuments steeped in history, and typical products of the area such as potatoes, hazelnuts, and/or honey, are some of the many things that make Prades a unique town in the world. A great place to visit.

Technical sheet of the Prades Vineyards

• Appellation: Prades
• Production: 100% Organic
• Type of wine: Red Wine
• Varieties: Grenache, Syrah, Pinot Noir, Merlot
• Alcohol grade: 15% vol. varied depending on the year
• Vineyard origin: Les Vinyes, Els Estepans, and Els Molinets, Prades, Tarragona, Catalunya, Spain
• Age of vineyard: Dating back to the 12th Century replanted planted in 2011.
• Winemaking: The Traditional Method
• Harvest grape: September – October
• Spontaneous fermentation: Maceration for 29 days
• Aging: 12 months in French Oak Barrels
• Bottle: Bordelaise 75 cl.
• Stopper: Natural Cork (45×24 mm.)

Location of the Bodegas Toto Marqués in Prades

Now that you know the story of ‘Bodegas Toto Marqués‘ and the DOQ Priorat and Prades Vineyards

Now it’s the perfect time to try out the Toto Marqués Great Wines

We can offer you a Vertical Tasting of the 3 Wines: Shirus 2015, Omus 2015, and Prades 950 2016 or you can order separately

Experience the Quality and Service of I Love Great Wines