Corpinnat

Location, climate and soils

The criteria established to set Corpinnat’s boundaries were territorial and environmental factors, factors relating to the human presence in an area, and finally, viticultural questions.

La zona geográfica de Corpinnat’s geographical area is located in the south of the province of Barcelona and a small part of the province of Tarragona. It lies in the pre-coastal depression of the Penedès and the adjacent mountain ranges that border it and forms a compact area within the D.O. Penedès. It includes all or part of the Alt Penedès, Alt Camp, Baix Penedès, Baix Llobregat and Anoia regions.

Corpinnat has a Mediterranean climate, with mild winters, hot summers and an annual rainfall of 500 mm. However, at higher altitudes the temperature contrast is somewhat greater, as is the total annual rainfall.

The soils of the Corpinnat area are mainly made up of breccias and conglomerates, sandstones and shales, calcareous and dolomites, conglomerates and sandstones, clays and gypsum, calcareous dolomites. If we look for the etymological meaning of Penedès and Corpinnat we will find a link to these soil types: Penedès comes from pinnae, which means rock and Corpinnat, which is a combination of COR, heart in Catalan, and PINNAT, the adjective of pinna.

Sparkling wines are classified depending on the amount of residual sugar:

Corpinnat Regulations

Corpinnat’s regulations have been designed to guarantee a minimum high quality in all the winemaking processes of the group’s wineries.

To achieve this, yields in the vineyard and press are limited and only certain varieties are authorised for cultivation and vinification. In the classification of the grape varieties, they use the area’s historical authorised varieties: the Macabeo, Perallada, Malvasía or Subirat Parent and Xarel·lo white varieties and the Garnacha, Monastrell, Sumoll and Xarel·lo Rosado red varieties. And the authorised non-historic varieties: the Chardonnay white variety and the Pinot Noir and Trepat red varieties.

Only these varieties can be vinified under Corpinnat rules and no more than 10% of all grapes in the winery can be authorised non-historic varieties.

Another condition sets the duration of aging on racks. To be classified a Corpinnat, the minimum aging period is 18 months, but the producer must also sell a Brut Nature sparkling wine with a minimum aging period of 30 months and another Brut, Extra Brut or vintage Brut Nature with a minimum aging period of 60 months in the bottle.

The aging time of sparkling wines with secondary fermentation in bottle is a determining factor in their quality. The longer the aging time, the more integrated and fine the bubbles will be and the more complex, creamy and pastry-like the wine will be.

The wineries who started Corpinnat

The wineries that are part of the collective brand and meet all the requirements and regulations are:

Gramona: founded in 1921, is a small winery and is one of the first names to come up when people talk about artisan and long-aged sparkling wines. Backed by four generations of experience, its III Lustros, Celler Batlle and the Enoteca are among the best sparkling wine brands in the country.

Llopart: founded in 1887 in Subirats, it is still a family business, and is highly regarded for the integrity and long aging that has always characterised their products.

Nadal: is a family who have been dedicated to vine cultivation and winemaking since 1510. They produced the first Nadal Brut cava in 1943. They specialise exclusively in the production of sparkling wines. This winery is located in El Plà del Penedés and Nadal Brut Salvatge, with four years of aging, is a good wine for those who love radically dry sparkling wines.

Recaredo: founded in 1924, this small, family-owned winery is traditionally recognised as the sparkling wine cellar with the longest pedigree and tradition in the Penedés region. Their productions are extremely short and limited, and they specialise in long-aged sparkling wines.

Sabaté i Coca: a winery located in the valley of the river Bitlles currently run by the fourth generation of the family. They use specific viticulture and vinifications for each of their plots and their 18 soil types.

Torelló: from the Masía de Can Martí de Baix, the Torelló family continues to offer sparkling wine lovers the greatest proof of loyalty to honest business principles, with a short and limited production, sold under the Torelló brand.

Can Feixes: located in Cabrera and Mediona, in the highlands of northern Penedès. The estate was founded in 1768 by Jaume Feixas and was bought by the Huget family at the beginning of the 20th century. They produce still and sparkling wines from their own harvest.

Júlia Bernet: is a family winery located in the Ordal massif with vineyards at about 400 metres above sea level. The family has been dedicated to viticulture for generations and decided to made their own sparkling wines with an emphasis on quality, commitment to the area and hard work.

Mas Candí: es una joven bodega fundada en 2006 ubicada en Les Gunyoles de Avinyonet, el macizo del Garraf, con un carácter inquieto y que busca experimentar con diferentes técnicas tanto en el viñedo como en la bodega.

Can Descregut: an intrepid winery that produces quality still and sparkling wines following the principles minimal intervention to express the typicality of the Penedès and the character of the mineral soils in Vilobí del Penedès..

Pardas: is the first member whose sparkling wines have been made since it became part of Corpinnat. Produced in the heart of the Bitlles river valley, in the north of Alt Penedès, they express and enhance the original characteristics of the territory.