Llopart "Panoramic" Brut, Corpinnat

The Llopart family have been growing vines in Penedès since 1385, which makes them one of the oldest wine-producing families in Europe still working their own land. More importantly, they were founding members of Corpinnat — the elite breakaway group of top Penedès estates that walked away from the Cava DO because "Cava" had come to mean cheap. Corpinnat membership comes with a strict code: fully organic, estate-grown, hand-harvested fruit and long ageing on the lees. This is traditional-method sparkling wine from the native trio of Xarel·lo, Macabeo and Parellada, given 40-plus months on the lees — well beyond the minimum for Champagne. That extended ageing shows in a fine, persistent bead and flavours of brioche and baked apple, while the Xarel·lo lends a savoury, almost saline grip that keeps it fresh. It genuinely drinks like Champagne. It's been chosen because it delivers Champagne quality at a fraction of the price, and because almost nobody at the table will have heard of it — which is exactly the point. The Corpinnat story gives you something to tell, and the scarcity means it's a wine where the membership and value message really lands.