Glorian Ruoka&viini, a well-known lifestyle magazine in Finland, has selected AUS Tallarol, an organic wine without added sulfites produced by Celler de les Aus, as the best natural wine of 2022.

AUS Tallarol is made with the Pansa Blanca variety, indigenous to the Alella region, and fermented in concrete egg based on clay (Oeuf de Beaune), with the aim to enhance the terroir’s character, increase the wine’s aromatic richness and volume on the palate.

“On the rich palate of Alta Alella’s Catalonian natural wine one can find appley fruitiness, lemon, grapefruit and herbal spiciness. Deliciously acidic white wine fits well with marinated olives, goat’s cheese and small savoury bites, and also with baked potato served with for example mushrooms, butter and cured salmon.” – Glorian Magazine

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The owner of Alta Alella, Mireia Pujol-Busquets, talks about her beginnings in wine world, the value that vineyards give to the environment and misconceptions about wine, among others, in an interview by The Femme Vine. This web page aims to connect wine lovers with women winemakers.

Read the interview for full details + info

“Absolutely lovely” – Samantha Cole-Johnson

Alta Alella MIRGIN Gran Reserva has been highlighted as Wine of the week by Samantha Cole-Johnson at JanisRobinson.com. From this cava, that was given a score of 17, Cole-Johnson highlights: “Lemon colour. Salty bread-dough aroma. Fine mousse, zesty acidity. Lemon peel, lime, white grapefruit with its corresponding pithiness, raw sweet almond, juicy green apple, chalk, a slight rubber aroma (not at all in a bad way, in a characteristically Cava way). The aromas are quite fresh and layered with more fruit (rather than secondary, evolved character) than the other Cavas. Plenty of minerality though. Persistent finish with some bread-dough autolytic quality. Absolutely lovely.”

The last time that a Cava was chosen wine of the week was a decade ago.

Alta Alella 10 · Gran Reserva 2010, the collectible cava made with a “Grand Vin” philosophy from the Pujol-Busquets family, has been selected as “enchanting  sparkling wine” by Pilar Molestina and featured in Gentleman magazine, March edition.

“This is a cava with a stature and elegance designed with great ageing capacity due to its winemaking philosophy and its varietal characteristics and origin (Paraje Calificado and sauló soil). After ten years of waiting, this elegant wine emerges with freshness as one of its outstanding characteristics. Wide, fresh, evocative and with a certain sensation of structure and great persistence”.

Translation from the original text by Pilar Molestina in Spanish – Gentleman Magazine (March 2022), Gastronomy section

A cava with great ageing capacity and a “grand vin” philosophy from the Pujol-Busquets family

After a decade’s wait, Alta Alella 10, a collectible cava made with a “Grand Vin” philosophy and great ageing capacity, was released in the market at the end of 2020. It is a 2010 vintage Gran Reserva Brut Nature, organic certified and fermented in barrel. This singular and long aged sparkling wine is the result of combining: Sauló soil from Can Genís Estate –a sandy granitic soil–, the exceptional and unique climate characteristics from Serra de Mar area, and many years of experience making high quality cavas.

The pandemic circumstances made it impossible for us to organize two consecutive press presentations: in October 2021 we held a tasting for the media in Barcelona, and in March 2022 we were finally able to bring together the press in Madrid. In both editions, the journalists experienced a journey through time and sensations thanks to a unique vertical tasting.

We uncorked ten vintages of Alta Alella 10 that have not been released to the market yet, to observe the character of each harvest and the evolution of ageing characteristics. We tasted the vintages 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2018, 2017, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012 and 2011, and finished the event enjoying the vintage 2010, currently available on the market.

The vertical tasting organized in Madrid took place in A’Barra Restraurant (* Michellin), and the one in Barcelona was held in Alta Alella.

“Alta Alella, a culture of excellence”

We began the year with great news: the Pujol-Busquets family have been featured on the front cover of Gilbert & Gaillard winter edition 2021-22. In an article about the new regulations that apply from 2022 to D.O. Cava, the publication has highlighted the quality of Alta Alella cavas, as well as the uniqueness of our territory and the “distinctive”, “game-changer” and “organic” character of our project.

On the inner pages, Mireia Pujol-Busquets shares her point of view concerning the new rules with the journalist Santiago Jimenez: «Regarding the changes to appellation rules, Mireia claims that “these changes were absolutely necessary. We have been talking about zoning for some time now, and we needed an identity that was more specific to each zone. […] Defending our terroir in a more concrete way make us more unique”.»

On the magazine cover, Josep Maria Pujol-Busquets and Mireia Pujol-Busquets are holding two of the winery’s cavas:
Alta Alella Mirgin Opus · Paratge Qualificat Vallcirera + info
Alta Alella 10 · Gran Reserva + info

The cava is described by Ramon Francàs as “gold, creamy, with notes of brioche, ripe stone fruit, nuts and a touch of honey”

The prestigious wine journalist Ramon Francàs Martorell has presented the collectible cava Alta Alella 10 · Gran Reserva as wine of the week in the Spanish daily newspaper La Vanguardia. He also shares recommendations for food and wine pairing with references to the wine tourism route ‘D.O. Alella’.

We highlight (original text in Spanish):
“It is a golden, creamy sparkling wine with notes of brioche, ripe stone fruit, nuts and a touch of honey. The carbonic, with tiny bubbles, is very well integrated. It exhibits volume, roundness, salinity, good acidity and great complexity. Aged for 129 months. Only half a thousand bottles are available.”

Some pairing recommendations are fish soup from Maresme region, rice with prawn carpaccio or beef stew with vegetables.