Free shipping from 12 bottles · Delivery throughout Switzerland
Free shipping from 12 bottles · Delivery throughout Switzerland
Penedès · Spain
Only around 50 of this finca's 455 hectares in the Garraf Massif are planted with vines. The rest is forest, scrub and rock. Jordi Esteve carries on what Carlos Esteva started in the 1970s.
5 Red wines, 9 White wines, 2 Rosés, 1 Sparkling wine. From CHF 21.00.
Touriga Nacional, Syrah
CHF 59.00
Cabernet Franc, Merlot
Sale price
CHF 25.90
Regular price
CHF 29.00
Chenin Blanc
CHF 59.00
Merlot
CHF 28.00
Xarello, Macabeo, Chenin Blanc
CHF 33.00
Incrocio Manzoni
CHF 49.00
Merlot
CHF 35.00
Xarello, Macabeo, Muscat de Frontignac
CHF 21.00
Viognier
CHF 59.00
Cariñena, Syrah
CHF 59.00
Merlot
CHF 55.00
Xarello, Chenin Blanc
CHF 28.00
Xarello
CHF 49.00
Sumoll
CHF 30.00
Xarello
CHF 49.00
Incrocio Manzoni
CHF 49.00
Chenin Blanc
CHF 59.00
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Tasting boxes
Origin
Can Ràfols dels Caus lies in the Massís del Garraf nature park, south-west of Barcelona, in the D.O. Penedès. The estate has Roman and medieval roots and has been farmed for centuries.
Of the finca's 455 hectares, only around 50 are under vine; the rest is forest, scrub and rock. In the 1970s Carlos Esteva began turning it into a wine estate.
The people
Carlos Esteva tried out many grape varieties in the Garraf, including some you would not expect in the Penedès: Chenin Blanc, Touriga Nacional, Incrocio Manzoni.
After his death in 2023, Jordi Esteve, his long-time companion in the work, took over. He continues to farm organically, picks by hand and vinifies each plot on its own.
Philosophy
Can Ràfols releases some wines only after long bottle ageing.
The Caus Lubis 2006, pure Merlot from a site inspired by Pomerol, spent twelve months in barrique and then 16 years in bottle before going on sale. The Gran Caus Rosat 2004 is pure Merlot as well.
White from limestone
Xarel·lo leads in the Terraprima and the Gran Caus Blanc. The Xarello Pairal ferments for 40 days in chestnut barrels, from 70-year-old bush vines. La Calma is pure Chenin Blanc from a single plot at 290 metres.
Xarello, Macabeo, Muscat de Frontignac
CHF 21.00
Xarello, Chenin Blanc
CHF 28.00
Xarello
CHF 49.00
Chenin Blanc
CHF 59.00
Terroir
Shallow limestone over dolomite, poor and stony. At Montombra the vines grow on limestone slopes of up to 50 percent.
For white, mainly Xarel·lo, plus Chenin Blanc, Macabeo, Parellada, Viognier, Muscat and Incrocio Manzoni. For red, mainly Merlot, alongside Cabernet Franc, Syrah, Cariñena and Touriga Nacional.
Mediterranean, with hot, dry summers and mild winters. The sea is close, and the breeze off the water cools the vines.
In the cellar
Picking is by hand, and each plot is vinified on its own and fermented spontaneously. The estate uses wood sparingly, with exceptions: the Xarello Pairal, from 70-year-old bush vines, ferments for 40 days in chestnut casks, and the red Montombra wines age 16 months in new barriques.
The Clímax Blanco Brut Nature, from Xarel·lo, Macabeo and Chenin Blanc, goes through its second fermentation in bottle and spends 30 months on the lees.
Montombra is the project on the steepest limestone slopes of the Garraf, all worked by hand, and it is made in just 60 numbered cases of six. It gives the Negre 2021 from Cariñena and Syrah, the Negre 2020 from Touriga Nacional and Syrah, and the Blanc 2021, almost pure Viognier.
Our favourite from Can Ràfols is still La Calma, pure Chenin Blanc from a site at 290 metres. If you like Chenin from the Loire, try it.
Photos
Carlos Esteva began turning the estate into a winery in the 1970s and tried out many grape varieties along the way. After his death in 2023, Jordi Esteve, a long-time companion, took over the management. He keeps the same line: organic farming, hand picking, spontaneous fermentation and every plot vinified on its own.
In the Massís del Garraf nature park, south-west of Barcelona, in the D.O. Penedès. The landscape is wild and full of limestone, and the Mediterranean is close. The estate has Roman and medieval roots and has been farmed for centuries. Of the finca's 455 hectares, only about 50 carry vines, the rest is forest, scrubland and rock.
Among the whites, the native Xarel·lo leads, joined by Chenin Blanc, Macabeo, Parellada, Viognier, Muscat and Incrocio Manzoni. Among the reds it is mainly Merlot, alongside Cabernet Franc, Syrah, Cariñena and Touriga Nacional. That local and international varieties stand side by side so naturally here goes back to Carlos Esteva's curiosity.
Viticulture on steep limestone slopes in the Garraf with gradients of up to 50 percent, all done by hand. The wines ferment spontaneously and age in French oak, the reds for 16 months in new barriques. We stock the Montombra Negre 2021 from Cariñena and Syrah, the Negre 2020 from Touriga Nacional and Syrah, and the Montombra Blanc 2021, almost pure Viognier.
Start with the Terraprima Blanc 2025 for CHF 21, made from Xarel·lo, Macabeo and Muscat. The Gran Caus Blanc 2023 is Xarel·lo with 15 percent Chenin Blanc, CHF 28. For more depth, the Xarello Pairal 2022 comes from 70-year-old bush vines and ferments for 40 days in chestnut wood, CHF 49. La Calma 2022 is pure Chenin Blanc, CHF 59.
Because the estate releases some wines only after long bottle ageing. The Caus Lubis 2006, pure Merlot from a site inspired by Pomerol, spent twelve months in barrique and then 16 years in bottle. Of the Gran Caus Rosat 2004, also pure Merlot, we were able to secure 18 bottles directly from the estate as an exception.
Yes, the Clímax Blanco Brut Nature 2019 from Xarel·lo, Macabeo and Chenin Blanc. It gets its second fermentation in the bottle using the traditional method and spends 30 months on the lees. Brut Nature means no dosage. There are 5,627 numbered bottles. It goes well with risotto, garlic prawns and omelettes.
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