Giannikos Winery - Pere Ventura

Pere Ventura is a renowned Catalan winery located on the road from San Sadurni d'Anoia to Villafranca de Penedès. The history of the house goes back to the 19th century, the birth years of the cava. The grandfather of the current generation was an oenologist with training in Dijon and Champagne. In 2011, the house stands for high-quality cava with great finesse and elegance. In addition to a range of cavas, still wine is also made, white, red and rosé. The Chardonnay Xarel.lo matured for four months in American oak barriques. Batonnage (stirring the lie) took place daily. The history of this house is the story of a family with the common thread; the pursuit of perfection.

It all started in 1845 with Pere Ventura Claramunt, a courageous and passionate wine grower who survived the difficult years of Phyloxera attacks on the region. He was succeeded first by his son and later by his grandson, Pere Ventura Peracaula, both respected oenologists who were among the great names of "cava" at the beginning of the 20th century. From 1991, the then 29-year-old great-grandson Pere Ventura Vendrell began to command the cellars. Today sales amount to about 900,000 bottles per year, of which 50% cava, 10% white wine and rosé wine, and 40% red wine. For the red wines, Pere Ventura uses French and American oak barriques that are renewed every 5 years. The expansion of CAVA is done according to the méthode traditionnelle. Pere Ventura considers impeccable presentation as important as the winegrower and the vinification. That is why a high-tech bottling line has just been purchased.

"Time" is the best ally here. All installations are designed and built around that philosophy. Time, rest, maturation, refinement, ... everything is a matter of time. You will be welcomed with open arms in a large room, the most stately part of the cellars. It is a neoclassical building, full of details that lead visits back to the early years of cava. For the entrance to the cellars you have to pass a platform underneath. You walk through underground passages and vaulted cellars where everything takes you back to the past. With more than 1000m in length and three underground floors, these cellars offer a quiet, relaxing walk in the atmosphere of a monastery, surrounded by scents of the past. The impressive production area for disgorging and bottling is also underground, so that there is a natural constant temperature. The high-tech machines and the most modern quality control instruments clearly translate the vision for the future that is part of Pere Ventura's strategy.

In the barrique cellar, all senses focus on the noble wood. Oak dominates the space, the perfumes, the decoration... Here "time" has won the battle, without haste but with the proud look of a conqueror. The company's philosophy is based on respect for origins and the desire to position itself among top products, thanks to the dynamism of the team and their main ally: time.

Penedès is located directly on the Mediterranean Sea and has in recent years, almost unnoticed, become one of the most important wine regions in Spain. The reason why it went unnoticed is because a lot of wine, including Cava, that leaves this area does not clearly bear the name Penedès. The area has a mild climate, which is favorable for growing grapes. On the coast it is warm, where full and powerful red wines are made. Inland, the vineyards are higher and therefore the grapes grown here are more suitable for the production of white wines. About 90% of the Cavas produced in Spain come from Penedès.