We met at Barcelona Airport, some having flown in early that morning, others having had a head start in Spain, enjoying what Catalunya has to offer.
In the bus we went and we were straight off to an exquisite restaurant called Cal Pere de Maset in Sant Pau d’Ordal where we enjoyed a seven course tasting menu, accompanied by seven wines, all from the Penedès and one sweetie from Valencia – showing the rich diversity that this region has to offer. The portions were perfect and the wines paired divinely, leaving us full and ready for our visit to Cava Rovellats in Sant Marti de Sarroca.
On arrival at the winery, we were greeted by Alex, who hosted our tour around the homely wine estate, where all the wine is made from grapes grown in their own vineyards. The Rovellats estate has a history dating back as far as the 12th century, and is now a family run business, with around eight staff working to make the Cava. The building we toured was built in the 1900s, when the winery as it is now was established by the Vallés family.
He took us on a tour of the building, which was rich with the winery’s history, including old grape presses and wall art showcasing old advertisements and awards, and it even had its own mini chapel!
Down a long flight of stairs, where the temperature dropped significantly (which everybody welcomed), we arrived in the cellar, called the Rotunda, designed with inspiration from the Paris catacombs. The cellar holds over one million bottles of cava, and the section we saw showcased the bottles undergoing secondary fermentation. Rovellats Cavas undergo at least 18 months of secondary fermentation, in comparison to the 9 month minimum required by the Cava DO.
Back up the stairs we went to the tasting room where we tried four Cavas – a 2022, 2021, 2019 and a 2015. The firm favourite was the 2015, one that Alex was particularly proud of, but all were lovely in their own right. The first two were Brut and the second two Brut Nature. With the wines we had selected cheeses, which were met with some scepticism at pairing cheese with fizz, but by the end everyone was convinced
It was a shame to say goodbye to the Rovellats Estate, but we headed to the coast to check into our hotel in Altafulla, where we enjoy ed a drink on the rooftop terrace before a well-earned early night.