Why it matters
The producer
Vilarnau’s commercial cellar dates to 1949. González Byass acquired the business in 1982, and the present winery opened in 2005. From Finca Can Petit, the team makes around one million bottles from 120 hectares, joining estate fruit with grapes from smaller family growers on long-term contracts. This scale supports a clear split between a citrus-and-bakery Reserva and a longer-aged Gran Reserva with more yeast, toast and breadth.
Eva Plazas has worked with Vilarnau since 1996, through the shift from a smaller cellar in town to the current Finca Can Petit winery. The 2005 opening put grape reception and winemaking together at the estate, allowing the team to handle each variety separately before blending. The result is visible in the Reserva: Macabeo, Parellada and Chardonnay can each bring a distinct part to a dry Cava rather than arriving as an undifferentiated base wine.
Place and vineyards
Where the wines begin
Sant Sadurní d’Anoia sits in Penedès, around 40 kilometres from Barcelona, at the centre of Catalan Cava production. Vilarnau’s local grapes explain the core of its bottles: Macabeo supplies body, aroma and acidity; Xarel-lo brings fruit and structure; Parellada adds floral notes, acidity and a lighter frame. Chardonnay broadens the Reserva’s middle palate, while Pinot Noir joins the Gran Reserva for extra fruit and weight.
The verified picture at Vilarnau is stronger on position and climate than on named soil types. Its 2005 winery stands at about 200 metres above sea level, overlooking vineyards toward the Montserrat Mountains. In Penedès’s dry conditions, preserving acidity is central to a dry sparkling wine, so the house’s blends rely on Macabeo, Xarel-lo and Parellada to keep citrus fruit and freshness present beneath bottle-aged lees character.
In the cellar
Vineyards and cellar
Vilarnau farms its own vineyards and tends parcels belonging to contracted family growers during the year. It gained organic certification in 2016 and changed fining from animal protein to pea or potato protein, making the Cavas vegan-friendly. In the 2022 Brut Nature Reserva, varieties are vinified separately, fermented over 30 days, blended, bottled for secondary fermentation and then aged on lees for at least 24 months. That sequence builds fine mousse, dry structure and bakery notes around white fruit rather than relying on sweetness.
Wines to know
The range in view
Brut Nature Reserva is the immediate, dry tier: 50% Macabeo, 35% Parellada and 15% Chardonnay, with more than 24 months in bottle. Its Macabeo and Chardonnay bring body and white-fruit weight, while Parellada helps keep the palate floral and bright. Expect citrus, white fruit, dried fruit and flowers with custard, honey and toast from lees ageing.
Brut Nature Gran Reserva Vintage extends the cellar time and expands the blend. The current specification uses Macabeo, Parellada, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir with more than 36 months in bottle; the 2018 bottling spent 48 months in bottle and used 35% Macabeo, 30% Parellada, 30% Chardonnay and 5% Pinot Noir. Longer lees contact moves the wine toward yeast, butter, toast, smoke and Mediterranean herbs, with a broader texture and a dry finish.
A useful way in
A bottle to begin with
Choose Vilarnau Brut Nature Reserva Organic 2022. It puts the house’s working parts in one bottle: organic vineyard practice, vegan fining, separate vinification of Macabeo, Parellada and Chardonnay, then at least 24 months of bottle ageing. It is dry and 11.5% alcohol, with citrus and white fruit on a creamy mousse, followed by floral notes, custard, bakery and toast. The wine shows how Vilarnau uses a long-aged Cava method while keeping the palate light enough for an aperitif or seafood.