Partida Creus XL Xarel-lo Ancestral NV

Partida Creus XL Xarel-lo Ancestral is a pet-nat made from 100% Xarel-lo grown on old vines in the Massís de Bonastre, Baix Penedès, on clay-limestone soils within the province of Tarragona. Xarel-lo is one of Catalunya's most ancient white varieties, first documented in Sitges in 1785, and is best known as the backbone of Cava production. Here it is bottled on its own, without blending, as a single-varietal ancestral-method sparkling wine.

After a direct press, the juice ferments spontaneously in stainless steel with indigenous yeasts. Before fermentation completes, the wine is bottled without fining, filtration, or added sulfites. It continues to ferment in bottle, resting on its fine lees for a minimum of 10 months, developing the fine, luminous bubbles characteristic of the ancestral method. No disgorgement. Zero additions at any stage — what Partida Creus calls their zero-zero approach.

Xarel-lo's thick skins and naturally high polyphenol content give the variety its characteristic structure and acidity. In this format, with extended lees contact, those qualities translate into a textured, mineral sparkling wine with citrus snap, a faint smoky or reductive note, and a slightly bitter finish typical of the variety. The wine carries no DO designation, as Partida Creus operates outside the Penedès appellation rules. Approximately 13% ABV. 750ml.