Why it matters
The producer
Perelada owns five vineyards in northern Empordà, covering around 138 hectares in total. Grenache and Carignan are the main focus across the holdings. Delfí Sanahuja is the winemaker, and smaller fermentation tanks allow individual parcels to be microvinified before blending.
The cellar uses concrete eggs, stainless steel tanks and oak barrels. Perelada also has Cava activity associated with an additional winery in Vilafranca del Penedès.
Place and vineyards
Where the wines begin
The vineyards run between the Pyrenees and the Mediterranean, across slate, sand, fluvial sediment and gravel. The Tramontane wind is a force in northern Empordà, while the soils give each estate a different physical setting.
Perelada presents its vinos de finca as single vineyard wines marked by the estate where they are born. Garbet is associated with slate, La Garriga with gravel and Malaveïna with clay loam. At Pont de Molins, 38 hectares lie on flat clayey soil with low silt content. Its vines were described as between 15 and 20 years old and include Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Tempranillo, Chardonnay and Syrah.
Wines to know
The range in view
The Empordà red range includes 5 Finques Reserva 2020, Finca Malaveïna 2022 and Aires de Garbet Castillo de Perelada 2020. The named finca wines belong to Perelada's single vineyard range, where soil is part of the bottle's definition.
5 Finques Reserva receives 12 months in oak, divided between 42% Allier French oak and 58% American oak. Aires de Garbet receives 15 months in second use, 300 litre Bordeaux format barrels made from Tronçais French oak, followed by bottle ageing. Finca Malaveïna has its own separate treatment within the range.