Recaredo are my absolute favourite producer of Cava, with a commitment to quality so rarely seen anywhere in the world. Every Cava they produce is of at least Gran Reserva quality, with over 30 months spent ageing on their lees, all from biodynamically produced vineyards they own. All delicate operations, such as disgorgement, are completed manual and they still train new employees in this increasingly rare skill. Their Cava ages under natural corks rather than crown caps, as they believe it makes for a more complex evolution over the long years these wines spend slumbering in their cellars, and every wine is bone-dry with no sweetness in the dosage. Whilst the last point perhaps may be more stylistic than qualitative, you can see the sheer amount of effort and detail that goes into every bottle of Recaredo Cava.

Normally I drink their ‘Terrers’ Cava as well as ‘Serral del Vell’, formerly known as ‘Brut de Brut’ but recently changed with the start of Cava del Paraje qualification, yet there are two exceptional wines beyond this. Turo d’en Mota sits atop, a 100% Xarel.lo wine made in tiny quantities and a wine I’ve not yet had the pleasure of tasting. Between the two is their ‘Reserva Familia Particular’, an almost equal blend of Xarel.lo and Macabeo that spends around 10 years ageing in their cellars before commercial release. Whilst expensive, this clocks in at considerably less than most vintage Champagne and massively over-delivers on quality. Better yet, as Recaredo print information about disgorgement dates and ageing on the back of every bottle, I was able to find a bottle that had been disgorged 18 months previously and see how it had changed during that period of time. The few times I’ve tried this wine it’s mostly been recently disgorged and whilst still delicious, it always felt a bit tight and unforgiving.

Tasting Note

52% Xarel.lo and 48% Macabeo from their own biodynamically farmed vineyards planted in 1950 and 1955 respectively, aged for 126 months under natural cork and disgorged on the 11th January, 2017. 12% ABV

Deepening to a lovely, strong waxy-lemon colour after 1.5 years post disgorgement and aromatically, this has opened up enormously. A real mixture of bitter orange, lemon rind, ripe pears, baked apple, warm hazelnuts and roasted almonds with a distinctive herbal edge; this constantly changes in the glass, even over short periods of time. Dry but with a soft, mouth-coating mousse and persistent, creamy acidity, the flavours broaden and deepen on the palate. The finish is long, clean and nutty, with that distinctive hazelnut character lasting the longest. Wonderfully balanced – an excellent example of what Cava can be at the top end. 95pts

Purchased from Eldiset for €41.25 (€55 euros on their wine list, with a 25% discount to take away)