Between Barcelona and Tarragona, the land rises from the coast in three tiers: from the warm Baix Penedès through the Mitja Penedès up to the Alt Penedès, where the vines stand on limestone and clay with a view of Montserrat. Here, Penedès wine is above all white wine made from Xarel·lo, Macabeu and Parellada – taut, herbaceous and saline, shaped by the Mediterranean sun and the breeze that drifts up from the sea on warm days. The region became famous for its sparkling wines, and its still wines express the same grape varieties with great clarity. As organic wines from the Penedès, we carry the wines of two biodynamic producers from the Alt Penedès: Celler Credo and Enric Soler.
≈ Aroma: Herbs
In all wines: 2,847 Wines
More about Penedès
Penedès wine between the Mediterranean and Montserrat
The DO Penedès lies in the hinterland between Barcelona and Tarragona, with Vilafranca del Penedès as its main town and Sant Sadurní d'Anoia as the centre of the sparkling wine cellars. In the Baix Penedès, close to the coast, it is warmest, and this is where the red varieties ripen above all. The Mitja Penedès, in the broad depression behind it, is the heartland of the sparkling wine grapes, while in the Alt Penedès the vineyards rise to 600 metres and higher, with cool nights and light, limestone-rich soils. Limestone and clay shape the ground almost everywhere. The climate is Mediterranean, with dry summers and mild winters, and the breeze from the sea that moves inland in the afternoon cools the vines and keeps the acidity fresh.
Xarel·lo, Macabeu, Parellada and the red varieties
Three white grape varieties carry the region. Xarel·lo is the most powerful of them, with citrus, fennel, a fine bitter note and a structure that can handle long ageing; old vines produce still white wines of astonishing depth. Macabeu brings fullness and white fruit, while Parellada from the higher sites contributes floral aromas, green apple and a slender, bright acidity. The classic sparkling wine cuvée unites all three. Among the red varieties, Garnatxa and Samsó stand alongside the autochthonous Sumoll, an acid-driven vine that had almost disappeared for a long time and is now being planted again for fresh, light red wines.
Cava, Corpinnat and Clàssic Penedès
Sparkling wine with a second fermentation in the bottle has been made in the Penedès since the late 19th century, and most of it bears the designation Cava. Within the DO Penedès there is the category Clàssic Penedès for sparkling wines made from organically grown grapes with long ageing on the lees. Corpinnat is an association of producers who bottle their sparkling wines outside the DO Cava under their own name: organically grown, hand-harvested and vinified entirely in their own cellar. For a long time, the still wines stood in the shadow of this tradition. Today, Xarel·lo in particular, vinified as a still wine, shows how much limestone, herbs and salt lie within these sites, and the DO Penedès has decided that in future it will only certify wines from organic viticulture.
Organic wine from the Penedès: biodynamic estates in the Alt Penedès
Celler Credo farms its vineyards in the Alt Penedès at altitudes of up to 600 metres biodynamically; horses plough between the rows and sheep graze in winter. The wines mature calmly and unfiltered, from the Volaina made from Parellada via the Mirabelles from Malvasia to the Ambvivalent, an orange wine from red Xarel·lo. Enric Soler, named Spain's best sommelier in 1997, took over the Cal Raspallet estate in the hamlet of Sabanell in 2004, where his grandfather had planted Xarel·lo in 1945, and has worked biodynamically since 2005. From these old vines on calcareous, sandy ground at around 400 metres comes the Nun Vinya dels Taus 2024, named after the molehills of the small parcel. If you wish to buy Penedès wine, here you will find the still, biodynamic side of the region.