6. MAS IRENE

Producer: Pares Balta
Web: www.paresbalta.com
Importer: Erne Drinks Company
DO: Penedés
RRPP: € 23.95
Stockists: Enowine

Pares Balta is a family-owned Catalan winery based in Penedes in north–eastern Spain, just south of Barcelona. They produce red and white wines and Cavas from five separate estates, each chosen for their particular microclimate. The Cusin family use a number of different grape varieties for a wide range of wines but they specialise in indigenous varieties. Their special cuvees use vines up to 80 years old to produce powerful, intense wines like Mas Irene (Cabernet Franc/Merlot) and Hisenda Miret (Garnacha). They also have a small estate in Priorato, where they produce the Garnacha/Cariñena-dominated Gratavinum 2 pi r.