Estrella Solé: "I've always felt self-conscious about choosing wines."

You're a performer, but for some time now you've been delving into the world of gastronomy with the Perifèria Cultural festival. Why did you decide to venture into this new field?

— In the end, I think everything is part of the same thing, and I experience the projects I'm involved in through my own voice. The language, the Catalan Countries, and a way of life are also part of gastronomy. I believe that one thing cannot be understood without the whole, and the goal of this festival is to put life and culture at the center.

How is wine present in the Cultural Periphery?

— It's very, very, very present because we have a very unique stamp that also makes us sadly original, because I think I wish there were more series or more programming in this sense. Our way of defending and valuing our territory is by having chef Sergi de Meià, who cooks live at most of the events. He uses local producers from absolutely zero-mile territory, works with their products, and, obviously, there's a detailed selection of a wine for each of the Festival's events and menus. This also moves away somewhat from the large macro-festivals, where what we usually find is the brand of beer we all know sold at an exorbitant price. Therefore, I think putting wine from local producers at the center makes perfect sense when you have local artists on stage.

I understand the process for selecting wines at the festival, but what do you do as a consumer?

— I can say from the outset that I've always felt self-conscious, or happily so, when it comes to choosing wines. Happily, because I've finally come to accept that not understanding the world of wine isn't a problem for choosing wine. Above all, I always try to choose Catalan wines, of course. I also try to listen a lot to the people around me who are true wine experts, of which there are quite a few, and then I also tend to order white wines. In this regard, I've sometimes felt like a second-class consumer.

Second, why?

— Yes, because I feel there's still a stigma that women only drink white or rosé wines, while red wines are for men. It may not be a stigma among experts, but it is present among people. In my case, I'm a white wine drinker, but it's a matter of personal preference.

You've said you've surrounded yourself with wine experts. Do you remember any special advice they gave you about this topic?

— There's one piece of advice I think I understood later and that I've ultimately applied to other areas beyond the world of wine: "Trust your judgment." In the end, I think this advice works. I mean, beyond what you may understand about the corpus of wines, the important thing will always be your taste. It doesn't matter if it's a cheaper or more expensive wine: if you like it, there's something to it, and often, it's not just because you like a product. Reaffirming the same taste or judgment works in all areas, including literature. I've sometimes let someone read a text of mine, and the person has said, "I don't understand; I'm not in the industry, nor do I read it regularly." And I tell them, "It doesn't matter; what matters to me is what you think about what I've written." So, as a wine consumer, I do think something similar happens; in the end, I'm just an average customer.

Have you considered doing a wine tasting or taking a course to learn more?

— I've done it, but I also have to tell you that it's a bit of a wildcard gift, when people don't know what to give you. But, honestly, right now I'm at a point where I'm feeling a bit lazy, basically because sometimes, on different occasions, I've seen a figure that's a common denominator, which is that man who wants to do everything, even speaks, or speaks in front of the producers themselves. If I go, I think I'll have a satirical perspective. In fact, maybe one day it'll help me write something.

Do you have any requirements when it comes to drinking wine?

— Something curious happened to me. When I wrote the novel, I called the glasses Riedel because my ex-partner was very knowledgeable about wine, and I gave him a pair of Riedels at the time. That's when I understood the value of glasses and the whole ritual behind them. Then the people at Riedel read the novel and sent me some glasses, which I opened last night. I really liked them, but I also thought, "Am I worthy of drinking from these glasses? Will I know how to take care of them well enough?" But I admit that the glass has a significant impact on how I drink.

What wine would you put in that glass?

— Well, my latest craze or vice is ice wine. It's a very sweet wine, so it's a dessert wine, almost a treat. I try to always have it at home, and in fact, I just bought a six-bottle case of Penedès ice wine, because I also see it as a love language. If I invite you to make ice wine at home, it means you're part of my circle of absolute trust, you're part of my tribe, I like you.