Steeped in history and able to claim one of the Mediterranean’s longest uninterrupted winemaking traditions, Penedès has remained at the forefront of viticultural innovation and sustainability. Situated halfway between Barcelona and Tarragona, this DO boasts more than 4,500ha of vineyards in Catalonia. The fact that it was one of the region’s producers that first released an organic-certified wine to market was certainly not a coincidence. Rather, It was the natural outcome of a forward-thinking, engaged community that has long placed its unique terroirs and viticultural heritage at the heart of the appellation’s strategic development.
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20 DO Penedès wines to try
Four decades after those first organic wines were bottled, DO Penedès once again positions itself as a pioneer: starting with the 2025 vintage all wines bearing the DO’s stamp will be certified organic. This reaffirms a holistic commitment to sustainability, aimed at preserving the landscape and ecosystems that give the wines of Penedès their identity and recognised quality. These concerns have become particularly relevant against the backdrop of climate change: the preservation of Penedès’ landscape, ecosystems and biodiversity – including the genetic diversity of local vines – has become essential in the face of future challenges.
Photograph supplied by DO Penedès
Regional diversity
It’s impossible to understand the wines and identity of DO Penedès without delving into specificities of each of its sub-zones and the diversity of its mesoclimates and terroirs. With altitudes ranging from 0 to 600 metres above sea level, Penedès slopes gently but decisively from the Mediterranean shore to the Ordal Mountains and the hills of Ancosa and Anoia. A complex combination of soils – from dense loams to alluvial fans by way of the distinct marls and limestones of the Garraf Massif – adds geological nuance to the topographic variety. Across all soil profiles, high percentages of active carbonates explain the fleshy minerality that makes the wines of Penedès so unique and robustly elegant, even if remarkably different and expressive of the appellation’s subzones.
At the threshold between Mediterranean and continental influences, Penedès is a fascinating mosaic of terroirs woven together by mountainous winds and maritime breezes in a beautiful dance across valleys and plateaus. Vineyards are nestled in large stretches of Mediterranean woods, the wines uncannily evoking the wild herbs, pines and scrub that line the plots.
Mindful viticulture, alongside ongoing research and development, have allowed Penedès producers to leverage and preserve these natural assets which are key to the region’s identity – at once allowing and requiring a sustainability-led mindset.
DO Penedès: Key facts to know
Location: halfway between Barcelona and Tarragona, Catalonia, Spain
Area under vine: 4,500 hectares
Climate: Mediterranean, with mild winters and hot dry summers. Some mild continental influences inland and at altitude.
Styles produced: still white, rosé and red; sparkling white and rosé (Classic Penedès)
Indigenous grape varieties:
White: Macabeu, Xarel·lo, Parellada, Malvasia de Sitges, Moscatel Gros Gra, Subirat Parent, Garnacha Blanca, Sumoi Blanc, Xarel·lo Vermell and Forcada.
Red: Ull de llebre (Tempranillo), Garnacha Negra, Samsó (Carinyena), Monastrell, Sumoi Negre and Moneu.
10 zones: Alts d’Ancosa/Ancosa Highlands, Conca de Foix/Foix Basin, Costers de l’Anoia/Anoia Hillsides, Costers del Lavernó/ Lavernó Hillsides, Costers del Montmell/ Montmell Hillsides, Marina del Garraf/Garraf Coast, Massís del Garraf/Garraf Massif, Montanyes d’Ordal/Ordal Mountains, Turons de Vilafranca/ Hills of Vilafranca, Vall Bitlles-Anoia/Bitlles-Anoia Valley
Indigenous wealth
If landscape, soils and topography are the textured canvas on which the personality of Penedès is drawn, the DO’s distinct grapes – namely its own indigenous varieties – provide its palette. Xarel·lo, the region’s flagship and most planted, is particularly expressive of local terroir while also showing incredible versatility: it produces vibrant whites, structured, age-worthy iterations, fleshy skin-fermented expressions and characterful sparklings. But there are many other local grapes – such as Subirat Parent, Malvasia de Sitges, Sumoll and Xarel·lo Vermell, a darker-skinned mutation – that are equally synonymous with Penedes’ history and identity; all producing wines that preserve incredible freshness and vibrant acidity.
The latter are attributes sought by the producers actively engaged in the research of both ancestral and new grape varieties – looking at the past in order to tackle present and future climatic challenges. Such efforts already allowed the recovery of the quasi-extinct Forcada and Moneu. Many other likewise forgotten counterparts are currently being propagated and tested in view of its inclusion in the DO’s list of approved varieties. Meanwhile, there’s also interest in how some resistant varieties perform across the region’s various terroirs, providing useful data as the DO prepares for its full-organic transition.
The results of this collective commitment and effort are to be seen in the quality of the wines crafted by the producers of DO Penedès and the key role that viticulture plays in the region’s culture and economy. In focusing on sustainability, therefore, Penedès producers are also preserving what makes this DO unique.
Photograph supplied by DO Penedès
DO Penedès: 20 wines to try
Classic Penedès
Albet i Noya, Efecte Ancestral
100% Xarel·lo
An ancestral-method sparkling Xarel·lo in which the variety’s juicy orchard fruit and herbaceous vibrancy are supported by intense minerality and a robust acid line. Soft perlage and creamy texture add to the wine’s elegance and food-pairing appeal. Organic certified.
Loxarel, Amaltea Brut Nature
Xarel·lo, Macabeu, Parellada
Pure and intense traditional-method sparkling with a robust core of pear, yellow apple, quince and lemon lined by dry wild flowers and toasted almonds. The saline, mineral structure adds both freshness and length. Organic and biodynamic certified.
Sparkling
Llopart, Vi·brant
100% Xarel·lo Vermell
With a subtle pink hue and gentle effervescence, this elegant pétillant naturel is as characterful as it is subtle. Gentle notes of cranberry and pomegranate hover over an earthy layer of forest floor and bread dough. Long moreish finish. Organic certified.
White
Can Descregut, Vermell
100% Xarel·lo Vermell
The pink-skinned mutation of Xarel·lo has a deeper aromatic profile and firmer grip than its lighter-hued sibling, which this wine, through ten hours of cold maceration, underscores further. Smoky, earthy lining to the white and red fruit and zesty liveliness throughout.
Can Feixes, Blanc Tradició
80% Xarel·lo, 20% Malvasia de Sitges
A smart blend of two white varieties that are synonymous with Penedès. Malvasia de Sitges’ subtle florality and saline veil is perfectly wed to Xarel·lo’s white orchard fruit, wild fennel and linden. Lovely structure and ageing potential. Organic certified.
Celler Credo, Can Credo
100% Xarel·lo
Hailing from the producer’s eponymous vineyard, this interprets Penedès’ flagship variety in a pure if uncompromising way. Fermented in used French oak barrels following a short maceration, it shows great fruit concentration and delicious textural grip. Organic and biodynamic certified.
Mas Escorpí, Font Jui
100% Xarel·lo
Using the free-run juice only, this is the purest of Xarel·los, fermented spontaneously in French oak barrels where it then ages on its lees. The result is a focused and poised wine, with filigreed smokiness over characteristic notes of Mediterranean herbs and citrus. Organic and biodynamic certified.
Joan Sardà, Ancorat
100% Sumoll
Interesting take on the versatile red variety Sumoll in a blanc de noirs iteration built around its assertive acidity, fleshed with juicy citrus (clementine, grapefruit and lemon). Lovely persistence with fingering notes of fennel, mint and sage. Organic certified.
Juvé & Camps – Propietat d’Espiells, Viver d’Espiells
100% Malvasia de Sitges
This expression of this indigenous, idiosyncratic member of the Malvasia family builds its complexity upon the vinification of three different components: in stainless steel, amphorae and oak. The result is an intense, layered and age-worthy wine. Organic certified.
Muscàndia, Viader – Davant del Corral
100% Xarel·lo
Single-vineyard, limited-edition Xarel·lo, partially fermented in French oak barrels. Nuanced nose with ripe white orchard fruit topped with smoky wood and dry herbs. Round and weighty on the palate without loss of freshness and drive. Organic certified.
Sumarroca, Il·lògic Xarel·lo
100% Xarel·lo
Classical and approachable, this is made with fruit from a 40-year-old vineyard planted on clay soils. The latter gives weight to the fruit with intense grapefruit, both white and pink, pineapple, pear and peach. Fresh, clean finish. Organic certified.
U Mes U, De Llevant
100% Malvasia de Sitges
Full of personality and outstandingly balanced, this wine really showcases the potential of this indigenous grape. 15% was fermented on the skins which helps to underscore the variety’s salinity, lifted by fine floral and herbal notes. Organic certified.
Orange
Anima Mundi, Pells
100% Macabeu
A truly complex, textural expression of Macabeu, hailing from a north-facing vineyard planted in 1969. 98 days on the skins in clay amphorae, followed by two months in French oak, result in a wine with fleshy orchard fruit, intense zestiness and a long, spicy finish.
Vins el Cep, Clot del Roure Brisat
100% Xarel·lo
Penedès’ flagship variety in all its might, whole-bunch fermented in 600-litre chestnut barrels, where it macerates with all the solids for three weeks. It then spends nine months on the lees in French oak barrels. Complex, fleshy, textural and unapologetic. Organic and biodynamic certified.
Rosé
Can Sumoi, La Rosa
40% Xarel·lo, 60% Sumoll
Gentle florality offset by intense minerality and fine tannins in this quintessentially Catalonian rosé, where herbs and rich citrus are outlined by a fine salinity. Watermelon, pomegranate, sage, tarragon and hibiscus play in the background. Organic certified.
Red
Can Ràfols dels Caus, Sumoll
100% Sumoll
A unique Sumoll, fermented and aged in chestnut barrels. Pomegranate, sour cherry, redcurrant and mountain herbs are sprinkled with black pepper and cocoa powder. Intense, with firm yet refreshing tannins and a long chocolatey finish. Organic certified.
Familia Torres, Clos Ancestral Negre
Garnatxa Negra, Moneu, Ull de llebre
An interesting blend, based on the ancestral variety Moneu, recovered by the Torres family. Floral notes (violets, roses) lead the nose, followed by intense cherry, plum and redcurrant jam. Intense, deep palate with velvety but firm tannins. Organic certified.
Heretat Mont-Rubí, Gaintus Vertical
100% Sumoll
Heretat Mont-Rubí has long championed the indigenous red variety Sumoll, of which it makes many interesting iterations, highlighting its natural freshness and savoury appeal. Here the variety ages for 12 months in French oak, with a subtle spicy lining and tannic poise added to the trademark juicy red fruit.
Jean Leon, Vinya Le Havre Reserva, Vino de Finca Calificada
Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc
Elegant, balanced and age-worthy blend of the two Cabernets, from a vineyard planted in 1968. A fine, spicy layer and notes of coffee, mocha and dark chocolate add depth to the juicy blue and black fruit. Robust yet elegant tannic structure. Organic certified.
Pardas, Collita Roja
100% Sumoll
Making the most of Sumoll’s elegant rusticity, this wine – fermented naturally in a combination of barrels, concrete eggs and stainless steel vats – combines wild berries with crunchy plum and savoury Mediterranean herbs, all held by firm, earthy tannins. Organic certified.
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