Vinyer de la Ruca

Vinyer de la Ruca
Manuel Di Vecchi Staraz
Banyuls, Roussillon, France

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Manuel Di Vecchi Staraz comes from Tuscany, but found his calling as a winemaker in the hills above Banyuls-sur-Mer, a few hundred metres from the Mediterranean in the Pyrenees. It was here that he discovered a steep, semi-abandoned terrace with ancient, low-yielding bush vines of Grenache, Carignan and Mourvèdre.

Manuel farms 5,5 hectares of sun-drenched grapes on steep shale slopes, and everything is done by hand and by mule. These really are tiny yields: a typical annual production gives around 2000 bottles only. Up until 2014, Manuel made wine in his garage but today he is an integral part of Les 9 Caves – a collaborative cellar where the Tutti Frutti Ananas wines are also vinified, which he makes together with Joachim Roque of Domaine Carterole.

Vinyer de la Ruca is something of an art project and the rooms where Philipp met Manuel in October 2021 have a museum-like feeling. The wine bottles are made out of hand blown glass with a number of different corks required to fit the varying sizes. This decision to do so much by hand is part of an overarching message to the customer that this is a craft, a unique journey that involves neither machines nor technology but human dedication and attention. Each bottle has a different shape and each wine a different expression. 

Due to the highly limited number of bottles available, we kindly ask customers to pay attention to our advised quantity when purchasing.