After having powerful reds that knock you off your chair like a Tempranillo or a Garnacha, it was a pleasure to open up a bottle of white Xarel.lo that offered the perfect accompaniment to our meal: chicken gyros with an avocado tomato salsa and greek yogurt sauce.

Bodega Albet i Noya is a well-known winery in the DO Penedes, famous for both their pioneering efforts in organic winemaking and their cultivation of native grape varietals. Founded in 1903 after the great Phylloxera plague, Joan Albet i Rovirosa managed the 210 hectare estate of which 90 hectares were vineyards in Can Vendrell. However, it wasn’t until Josep Maria and Antoni, the most recent generation, took over the estate when organic farming became synonymous with Albet i Noya name. Currently, of the 101 hectares they control, 76 are given over exclusively to the cultivation of vines.

For us, the wine was excellent. Light white gold color, teetering on translucent. On the nose, we both picked up a delicate honeydew quality with light floral notes. Where Ryan found aromas of white peach, I found more almond. In the mouth, the flavors were rich with good acidity. The palate showed strong mineral and lime characteristics with a background of white flowers – although neither of us could decipher which white flowers those were. Where Ryan found this wine to be a surprisingly good food wine, I found to be slightly lacking in the finish. I would agree that the wine is very light and elegant, to be enjoyed for its nuances, it also lacked a bit in the end, and could have used more acidity to liven finish. Even with this difference, we were only half a point ap art as far ras ourating of it.

Ryan

Gabriella

Wine: Xarel.lo Classic 2006
Producer: Albet i Noya
Varietal: 100% Xarel.lo
Region: D.O. Penedes, Spain
Price: 4.5euros