Articles

Viladomat-Aragó, a new take on organic Penedès whites

by  |  12-01-2023

The Penedès region is as vast as it is small. Bisected by an ugly gash that is the AP-7 highway, there are more than 30,000ha of vineyards spread across the plain and into the lower... more »

A surprise batch of Catalan Vins de Finca

by  |  22-12-2022

Charting the path of Vi de Finca wines in Catalunya or those of Vino de Pago in greater Spain, is a mighty tricky affair. While these are both single vineyard certifications akin to something of... more »

The wines from Malvasia de Sitges 2022

by  |  28-09-2022

That there are 10,000 grape varieties in the world is daunting. That there are also the countless synonyms, madness. Here is the story of but one finding new a new life in the modern age.... more »

Tasting Parés Baltà’s future, from 2021

by  |  07-09-2022

In cleaning up my tasting notes, I came across this, en primeur tasting of wines that I did in the early spring at Parés Baltà with the winemaker, Marta Casas. I believe I was up... more »

The return of la Cimera del Xarel·lo!

by  |  07-07-2022

A tasting featuring Xarel·lo sounds like a wonderful thing. That’s why back in 2015, Josep Cusiné of Parés Baltà and Ignasi Segui of Vinyes Singulars had the idea to make it happen at the 16th-century... more »

Five wines from Penedès to know right now

by  |  30-06-2022

Following is a curated selection of wines derived from the most-recent DO Penedès report. I’d hate to refer to them as “picks for the summer” but admittedly, four out of the five wines are whites... more »
Photo from Huguet de Can Feixes

The first “Vi de Mas” certifications arrive to DO Penedès

by  |  22-06-2022

It was just back in November of 2021 that Catalunya’s DO Penedès announced a massive overhaul of their bylaws with most of the changes aimed at re-orienting the region via a “10-year plan”. One of... more »

The wines of DO Penedès 2022

by  |  09-05-2022

The DO Penedès has been on the move lately. The biggest news of course is their ten-year plan where they’ve set up a system under the Vi de Mas for vineyard classifications. Even more impressive... more »

Ukraine meets Penedès

by  |  28-03-2022

When Anna Zahorodnya was a teenager in Kostopil, Ukraine she had no idea how different her adult life would be. And who could, given that now in her 30s, she lives in a completely different... more »

Understanding DO Penedès’s ‘Vi de Mas’ certification

by  |  03-12-2021

Last week, an article I wrote for Decanter covered a rather massive number of changes that DO Penedès has planned up through 2030. Some of the highlights are: All vineyards fully-certified as organic by 2025... more »