Celler de les Aus is the no-added-sulfites project of the Pujol-Busquets family, an offshoot of their Alta Alella estate dedicated to truly natural wine. Every bottling is named for a bird that lives in the nearby Serralada de Marina natural park.
Backstory
Josep Maria Pujol-Busquets and his wife Cristina Guillen founded Alta Alella, establishing it in 1991 on the 19th-century Can Genis estate and farming organically from 1992. In the early 2000s Josep crafted a cava with no added yeasts, no added sugar and no added sulfur, using the must of Pansa Blanca for the second fermentation. The result, eventually named AA Bruant, was Spain's first natural cava. In 2012 the family inaugurated Celler de les Aus as an independent natural-wine winery within the estate. It is now led by Josep's daughter Mireia Pujol-Busquets.
The Region
The estate lies in Alella, just north of Barcelona, in the hills of the Serralada de Marina near the Mediterranean. The signature grape is Pansa Blanca, the local name for Xarel-lo, complemented by the rare Pansa Rosada, of which only about five hectares survive worldwide.
Vineyards and Farming
Farming is certified organic and has been since 1992. About three hectares are dedicated to Pansa Blanca for the natural cava and white wine.
Winemaking
The whole point of the project is wine made with no added sulfur and minimal intervention. The cava achieves its second fermentation from grape must rather than added sugar and relies on native rather than commercial yeasts.
The Wines
The wines carry bird names from the local park. AA Bruant is the pioneering no-sulfite cava and AA Tallarol the white, both built around Pansa Blanca.
