Recaredo Serral del Vell 2008: Best Sparkling Wine in Premis Verema

The organizers of the Premis Verema 2018 have recognized Recaredo Finca Serral del Vell 2008 as Spain’s best sparkling wine, describing it as “an excellent wine that combines creaminess, richness and elegance” and noting the “quality that comes from long ageing”. The prize was awarded within the framework of the 18th edition of the Experiència Verema València, a well-established event in the world of wine. This year, the winners were chosen based on votes submitted by 11,600 readers of the Verema blog.

Oenologist Ton Mata (a member of the third generation of the Recaredo family) accepted the prize awarded to Serral del Vell 2008, a sparkling wine that is a sublime expression of long ageing, having spent a minimum of eight years and seven months ageing on the lees. Like all Recaredo wines, Serral del Vell is aged in bottles with natural cork stoppers (a material that is sustainable, recyclable and technically ideal in qualitative terms) and manually disgorged by skilled craftsman at the naturally cool temperature of our cellar.

Serral del Vell 2008 is made from a blend of Xarel·lo (52%) and Macabeu (48%), harvested from the Finca Serral del Vell, a vineyard that stands on a small plateau (serral) carved out of the Bitlles Valley Highlands, with loamy calcareous soil—features that give each vintage of this wine its own unique character.

2008 stands out as a vibrant, balanced vintage, marked by meteorological contrasts—high temperatures and extreme drought in the autumn and winter—and a harvest of high-quality grapes in exceptionally good health. Recaredo’s average yield for the 2018 harvest was 34.2 hl/ha, ideal for achieving maximum expressiveness.

Ton Mata (left) receiving the Verema awards for Serral del Vell 2008. On the right, the prizes (Source: Verema).