Penedes
Definition - What does Penedes mean?
The Penedès is a Spanish wine making region that is located about an hour southeast of Barcelona. It is a coastal region which makes sparkling Rosé and white Cava, dry reds and whites and dessert wines that have been in production for centuries. This historical region is especially important to the wine culture of Spain and still has over 300 vineyards operating today.
WineFrog explains Penedes
This wine region of Penedès contains several sub-regions, Alt-Penedès, Mitja- Penedès and Baix-Penedès, that all produce different types of wine. Alt Penedès is the region located at the highest altitude and makes the majority of fine wines in the region. Mitja-Pendès is the middle sub region, which has the highest volume of vineyards and Baix-Penedès is the lower sub region that is home to the capital and has historical cellars and wineries that prove Penedès' rich wine making history.
The climate in Pendès is Mediterranean, with mild temperatures all year long and cold winds blowing east from France but the vineyards are protected by the Montserrat mountains. The soils are comparable in all three sub regions and include clay, sand and limestone.
There are many grape species grown in the Penedès region, including grapes used to make cava (70% of the country's cava is grown here) the Parellada, Xarello, and Macabeo, Malvasía Riojana and Chardonnay.
For dry red wines, the Garnacha Tinta, Tempranillo, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cariñena, Samsó, Merlot and Monastrell grapes are used. For dry white wines, the native Malvasia and Muscat grapes are used as well as imported varietals like Chenin Blanc, Muscat de Frontignan and Riesling.
