Articles

The eternity of Xarel·lo: Parés Baltà – Electió 2004

by  |  03-04-2020

“To date, we still don’t know how long Xarel·lo can ultimately age.” I’ve heard this oft-repeated about this white grape variety over the years, but the very first time I heard it was from Ton... more »

Torres brings Forcada to the forefront

by  |  11-03-2020

Spanish winemaking stalwart, Torres has announced an expansion of Forcada grape plantings near the village of la Llacuna in Alt Penedès. Embracing their overall plan to reintroduce this grape into production, they’ve planted the vines... more »

DO Penedès & ‘native’ reds

by  |  14-01-2020

In simpler times, if one were drinking a white wine from Spain, it would most likely have been a white from Penedès. This shouldn’t come as much of a shock given that 80% of the... more »

Wines for la Cuesta de Enero/Uphill January

by  |  02-01-2020

To all who have survived family and the holidays, well done. Now we arrive to the cold, murky days of January, probably broke, or at at least a bit broken. You probably don’t even want... more »

Best Catalan wines of 2019

by  |  16-12-2019

We come to that time of year for the “100 Best Wines in the Whole Universe” or other similarly-named yet no less grandiose summaries in wine publications. Obviously, they’d be more aptly named, “The Best... more »

Sicus, when wine is made in the vineyard

by  |  12-07-2019

Driving forty five minutes covers a lot of ground in the wine world. It affords a 41km view of the entire Côte d’Or in Burgundy. Similarly, it will see you go from the top to... more »

A new take on Parellada: Celler Credo – Volaina 2018

by  |  20-06-2019

For anyone learning the finer details of wine, you typically memorize that there are three core grapes to Cava: Xarel·lo, Macabeu, and Parellada. The first two abound in individual merits, especially my Carignan-cheat-grape, Xarel·lo. But... more »

Family wineries and the issue of Climate Change

by  |  04-03-2019

Last week I was invited to a friendly, relaxed lunch in Barcelona, albeit one that was focused on the serious topic of Climate Change and how it relates to winemaking. The unfortunate joke behind the... more »

Natural etc. Can Sumoi

by  |  01-03-2019

Europe is in the “Recuperation Era” of winemaking and by that I mean that there is still a lot of recuperation of old varieties, vineyards, and winemaking methods taking place to produce the modern, evolving... more »

Corpinnat and the death of fine Cava?

by  |  01-02-2019

At the end of January, the lucky wineries in Penedès, Catalunya were those out pruning their vines. Then there were others, dealing with heavy affairs that don’t happen every year, but perhaps once a generation.... more »