The Wine: Cap de Pardals Ancestral 2021
Viticultor Ramon Jané Cap de Pardals Ancestral 2021 is a sparkling white wine made from sustainably farmed grapes, with native yeast, no filtration, and no added sulfites.
The Producer: Viticultor Ramon Jané
Viticultor Ramon Jané creates forward-thinking, soulfully gratifying wines that showcase the intuitive brilliance of his superb biodynamic fruit and push the boundaries of tradition in his native Penedès. Ramon is a viticultor, or winegrower, in the purest sense, tending his families vines with vision, wisdom, and care, shepherding them to their polished, delicious bottled state with restrained technique and patience.
The Region: Penedès
Penedès is a sub-region located west of Barcelona, in Catalonia, Spain. Penedès is Catalunya’s most important wine district and carries the status of DO, Denominación de Origen. The region is famous worldwide for its main product: the excellent Cava sparkling wine – made with the Champenoise method.
The Terroir of Penedès
Penedès has a Mediterranean climate with mild winters and hot summers. The three subregions in which it can be divided, Baix Penedès, Medio Penedès, and Alt Penedès (where Azimut is located) – respectively low, middle, high Penedès, - have slightly different climates due primarily to altitude and distance from the coast. Soils range from calcareous, the prevalent formation, to sandy and clayey.
The Red Wines of Penedès
Red wines are usually blends of native varietals such as Tempranillo, Penedès main red grape varietal, Garnacha (Garnatxa), Monastrell, and Carinena. In recent years, a handful of producers have been experimenting with international varietals such as Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot with good results.
The White Wines of Penedès
White still wines, in other words, non-Cava white wines, are made from the same native varietals used for Catalunya’s flagship sparkler, Xarel-lo, Macabeo, and Parellada. Only recently Chardonnay has been used both in Cava blends and as a still wine, a trend that’s gaining popularity.