Winemaker Notes
Blend: 100% Malvasia de Sitges
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2024 Malvasía de Sitges is produced with grapes from a vineyard Pepe Raventós planted in 2018 on sandy limestone soils. The wine has the characterful personality of the variety in this region. Rather than being terpenic and too much, it comes through as salty, umami and tasty, with notes reminiscent of chicken broth, evoking food. It has a balanced and vibrant palate, was completely unoaked, vinified and aged in concrete. It has a complexity and depth that is quite amazing for such a young vineyard.
Persistent with jasmine aromas and tropical fruit flavors, both grape and name are far-reaching. Approximately 70 registered grapes contain Malvasia as part of their name or are listed as a synonym. The French call it Malvoisie, Germans call it Malvasier, British say Malmsey and confusingly one variety double-times under the alias, Boal, on the island of Madeira. In any case, Italy has more forms of Malvasia than any other country: Malvasia Bianca di Candia, Malvasia di Candia Aromatico and the red-skinned Malvasia di Casorzo from Piedmont. The list goes on. Somm Secret—The actual name could stem from an Italian mispronunciation of Monemvasia, a southern Greek port.
A superior source of white grapes for the production of Spain’s prized sparkling wine, Cava, the Penedes region is part of Catalunya and sits just south of Barcelona. Medio Penedès is the most productive source of the Cava grapes, Macabeo, Xarel-lo, and Parellada. Penedes also grows Garnacha and Tempranillo (here called Ull de Llebre in Catalan), for high quality reds and rosès.