The Wine: L'Abrunet Rose' 2019

Celler Frisach Vinícola L'Abrunet Rose' 2019 is a rose' natural wine made from sustainably farmed grapes grown in Corbera d’Ebre, Catalonia, Spain. L'Abrunet Rose' is made in stainless steel, unfined, no added sulfites.

The Producer: Celler Frisach

Francesc Ferre’s family has been farming grapes organically in Corbera d’Ebre for over 200 years, but only just began making wine in 2009 with then 21-year-old Francesc at the helm, fresh out of school. It looks as if a giant pulled a ripcord from the earth to create the mountains on either side of their Mediterranean valley, flanked by a forest to the east and a modern phalanx of windmills on its blustery western ridge. Corbera’s combination of hot, dry days in the Mediterranean sun, evening marinada onshore wind, and cool nights at Corbera’s high elevation allows grapes to maintain their acidity in otherwise arid conditions and makes it an ideal place to grow fresh, vivacious Garnatxa.

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.