Author: Gisela

Great news for Alta Alella lovers! We are proud to share that various of our cavas have been featured in the ‘Catalan sparkling wines special report’, written by the sparkling wine expert Tom Hewson and published by renowned Master of Wine and journalist Tim Atkin.

In the report, a total of seven cavas of the Pujol-Busquets Family have been distinguished with a score of more than 90 points, all of them organic and with the quality and traceability stamp Integral Producer (Elaborador Integral).

Alta Alella Mirgin, “everything you could hope for”

Special mention has received Alta Alella Mirgin 2019, which has been chosen “Entry Level Catalan Sparkling Of The Year” (wines up to 15 €). This cava is, according to Hewson, “everything you could hope for”. “A delicious, perfectly-tuned wine of terrific value with its vivid, juicy lime fruit and marine aromatics” he adds.

Alta Alella Laietà Rosé 2019 also stands out in its category, which has obtained the best score for a sparkling rosé. “One of the region’s [Catalonia] most impressive rose sparkling wines, this is invitingly fragrant with cherry, strawberry and lightly creamy notes”, describes the expert.

All the ratings for Alta Alella

• Alta Alella Mirgin Exeo Evolució+ 2005 – Cava de Guarda Superior Gran Reserva 94 points
• Alta Alella Mirgin Exeo 2017 – Paratge Qualificat Vallcirera 94 points
• Alta Alella Mirgin Opus 2019 – Paratge Qualificat Vallcirera 94 points
• Alta Alella Laietà 2019 – Cava de Guarda Superior Gran Reserva 93 points
• Alta Alella Laietà Rosé 2018 – Cava de Guarda Superior Gran Reserva 93 points (Top score for a rosé sparkling wine)
• Alta Alella Mirgin 2019 – Cava de Guarda Superior Reserva 93 points (Best Catalan entry-level sparkling wine)
• Alta Alella Mirgin Rosé 2019 – Cava de Guarda Superior Reserva 93 points

Hewson also highlights the uniqueness of the Alella territory, the Sauló (sandy granitic soil), the Mediterranean climate and the proximity to the sea. These are characteristics that the author considers unique and that produce “open wines”.

You can read the full report by purchasing it on the website https://timatkin.com

We are delighted to reveal that Alta Alella Mirgin Exeo Evolució+ 2004 is part of the exclusive World’s Best Sommeliers’ Selection

On January 16th, thirty of the world’s most distinguished sommeliers traveled from all corners of the globe to the United Kingdom to participate in the premiere of the World’s Best Sommeliers’ Selection, an exclusive tasting by William Reed (The World’s 50 Best Restaurants and World’s Best Vineyards). Sommeliers from 50 best restaurants such as  Diego Vásquez Luque (Central y Kjolle), Rodrigo Briseño (Disfrutar), Miguel Ángel Millán (DiverXO), Mohamed Benabdallah (Asador Etxebarri), Nina Hojgaard Jensen (Alchemist), Jhonel Faelnar (Atomix), Rubén Elias Velazquez (Quintonil), Agnese Morandi (Table by Bruno Verjus), Milan Rukavina (Gaggan Anand) and Kristell Monot (Mugaritz), amongst others.

From Alta Alella, we had the great opportunity to present the collectible cava from the Pujol-Busquets Family ‘Alta Alella Mirgin Exeo Evolució+ 2004’, which has been included in the final selection. “Delicate aromatic nose dominated by ripe lemon zest, dried orange, dried apple and cinnamon spice. Toasted bread and almonds are found in the background. The palate is dynamic with fine, persistent bubbles and a salty touch, with mild acidity. Ripe yellow peaches, candied lemon, dried fruits and a finish with a quality bitter touch”, highlighted the sommeliers.

Alta Alella Mirgin Exeo Evolució+ is an organic and vintage cava, with 18 years of patient ageing on lees, made with a selection of the best grapes from Paraje Vallcirera: Pansa Blanca and Chardonnay. This is the first vineyard planted by the family when they settled in Can Genís in 1991. The vines grow in Sauló (sandy granitic soil) and less than 2km from the Mediterranean sea, conditions that give the grapes a natural acidity that is essential to make age-worthy cavas.

Food pairing recommendations

The professionals that tasted Alta Alella Mirgin Exeo Evolució+ 2004 find it wonderful to be paired with “creamy foods and also pickled flavours that would reflect the secondary fermentation notes”. They suggest, for example, “fresh kumamoto oysters with a mignonette or a fried mushroom pastry with truffle cream”, or enjoying it “as a refreshing beverage after the first course”.

Being part of this privileged list is a reward to many years of work aiming to produce great wines, and confirms the aging potential of Pansa Blanca and its ability to captivate the most exquisite palates.

· Josep Maria Pujol-Busquets has received the distinction during the celebration of the Guía Vivir el Vino Awards in Madrid.

· “It is elegant, direct and with a fresh and long acidity, which makes this ageworthy wine great” – Raúl Serrano

We are thrilled to share some exciting news: Alta Alella 10 2012, the collectible cava made by the Pujol-Busquets Family, has received the “Magnificent Best Sparkling Wine” award from Vivir el Vino 2024 Wine Guide. A recognition that demonstrates Alta Alella’s commitment to producing high-quality cavas.

Josep Maria Pujol-Busquets, owner and founder of Alta Alella, has received the award during the celebration of Vivir el Vino Guide event, held on January 29th at the Cofidís Alcázar Theater in Madrid.

Alta Alella 10 is the result of many years producing high-quality cavas that aim to represent their origin landscape, influenced by the Mediterranean (vineyards located less than 2 km from the sea) and vines that are grown on Sauló (sandy soil of decomposing granite). These are distinctive characteristics of the Serra de Mar territory (Barcelona), which give the grapes an extraordinary natural acidity suitable to produce age-worthy cavas. This one in particular is patiently aged on the lees for at least 10 years.

“(…) A sparkling wine that maintains the expression of its fruit, from the first hit the freshness invades you and maintains the great complexity all along. It is elegant, direct and with a fresh and long acidity, which makes this ageworthy wine great”, describes Raúl Serrano, director of the media and sommelier with more than 30 years of experience in the wine industry. With a score of 99 points out of 100, Alta Alella 10 is the best cava listed by the guide.

Three more cavas from the winery have obtained great ratings from Guía Vivir el Vino 2024: Alta Alella Mirgin Opus Paraje Calificado Vallcirera 2019 with 96 points, Alta Alella Laietà 2019 with 94 points, and Alta Alella Mirgin 2019with 92 points.

Vivir el vino is one of the most popular wine magazines in Spain and it publishes the annual Vivir el Vino Guide, which brings together the best wines that can be found on the market that year. Raúl Serrano selects the 365 wines that conform the list, a different wine for each day of the year. Among all of them, they also highlight the “11 Magnificent” awards, which determine the best wine in each category. A blind tasting in which Serrano and the tasting panel choose “the best of the best”, in which Alta Alella 10 2012 has been designated Best Sparkling Wine.

“The color of a summer sunset, this wine has aromas of nectarine, cantaloupe and freshly ground white pepper. It offers brilliant acidity and flavors of tangerine, strawberry, lemongrass, butterscotch and dried thyme”. This is how Mike DeSimone, writer and wine educator, describes our Alta Alella GX Rosé in Wine Enthusiast, one of the most widely read and popular wine magazines in the industry. The specialized media highly recommends our organic rosé, giving the wine a score of 92.

Alta Alella GX Rosé is a fresh and direct rosé with a distinctive salty minerality, with which we want to express the Mediterranean character of the Red Grenache and Hairy Grenache, the two grape varieties with which we make it.

Such as all our wines and cavas, it is organic and vegan-friendly.

Can’t wait to taste it? Buy it now in our online store