Bike Tour of Penedes

    
    I am having a fantastic time studying abroad in Barcelona, Spain! I've been enjoying all the delicious foods and excursions throughout this trip. On our 8th day in Spain, we did a bike tour of Penedes, the largest wine region in Spain. This bike tour is by far my favorite bike ride I have ever done in my life! We were surrounded by vineyards and beautiful mountain landscapes throughout the bike tour. My classmates and I were able to see Montserrat. 

    During the bike tour, we stopped at two wineries. The first winery we went to was Albet i Noya. The winery is known for its organic wines and Classic Penedes sparkling wine. We toured around the vineyards and the facility where they age and process their wines. On the tour, we learned a lot about organic winemaking, which focuses on using no chemicals and pesticides in their vineyards and using sustainable resources such as solar panels to get their energy. At the winery, we tasted two of their wines. The first one was efecte Brut Rosat which is a sparkling rosé wine. It had a pretty pale red color, and the aroma was sweet and fruity. The second wine we tried was La Volada which was a white wine. The aroma had a floral scent. The taste was also sweet, fruity, and refreshing. After the tour and wine tasting, we ate lunch which overlooked Albet i Noya's vineyard. 

The second winery we went to was called Cava Guilera. They focus on making long aging cava. Cava follows the same process of making champagne, but they use different grapes, and the climate in Penedes is very different from France's climate. Penedes is warm and dry because mountains like Montserrat blocks cold air. At the winery, we learned the process of making cava and tasted three different cavas. The cavas we tasted were harvested in 2013 and 2014. It was fascinating to taste cava that has been aging for 10 years. The cavas were very refreshing to drink!

    This experience truly opened my mind about Catalonian wine. Before coming to Barcelona, I never really enjoyed the taste of wine. But after visiting these two wineries, I started to show more appreciation for wine. I learned so much about the history of Penedes, organic winemaking, and the process of making cava. I also learned how to taste wine, which allowed me to enjoy tasting and smelling the aroma of the wine. Seeing the acres of vineyards on the bike tour showed me how important and popular wine is in Catalonian culture.