Barcelona Wine Week has enabled Montrubí to celebrate the 25 vintages of Gaintus Vertical. A special milestone marked by the uncorking of both older and current vintages of this emblematic wine from the L’Avellà winery, in Alt Penedès.
The celebration took place through a guided tasting led by Álvaro Ribalta MW, which allowed attendees to discover the vitality of older vintages and to understand the positive evolution of this wine. Gaintus Vertical holds strong symbolic value for the winery, as it represents the commitment made a quarter of a century ago to recover Sumoll negre, a grape variety that was then practically at risk of extinction.
There have been 25 uninterrupted vintages of a wine that has not only defined the winery’s identity but has also demonstrated that high-quality single-varietal Sumoll negre wines with remarkable ageing potential can be produced. During the tasting, the 2002, 2004, 2010 and 2018 vintages —currently available on the market— were served, followed by a sample of the latest vintage, 2025, which is still ageing in the winery’s tanks and awaiting further evolution.
As general conclusions, both Ribalta and the winery’s technical team expressed great satisfaction with the evolution of a product with “many layers” and clear ageing capacity. “Sumoll requires patience,” reflected Esther Millas, commercial director, and Jordi Echáiz, the winery’s oenologist, highlighting that it can be enjoyed with remarkable “liveliness” even many years later, as demonstrated by the 2002 and 2004 vintages.
“Young Sumoll wines display more vegetal notes which, over time, evolve into balsamic touches,” they added, also underlining the importance of the vintage factor, climate conditions and changes in vineyard sites — elements that were assessed and discussed throughout the tasting. “It is impressive to be able to make this journey, because each vintage tells a story and shows an extraordinary overall evolution,” Ribalta MW concluded.
Gaintus Vertical, awarded at La Guía de Vinos 2026
Coinciding with the 25th anniversary of Gaintus Vertical, the wine received the “Anniversary of the Year” award, granted annually by La Vanguardia’s Wine Guide. The recognition, together with the other awards of the edition, was announced during Barcelona Wine Week.
“This wine is pure identity of Penedès and Catalonia,” stated Lluís Tolosa during the award ceremony, highlighting the winery’s work in recovering the variety. Esther Millas expressed gratitude for the recognition of a grape variety that, after 25 vintages, has proven capable of producing wines of “outstanding quality, longevity and deep territorial roots.” “It is a variety we must preserve,” she concluded.
La Vanguardia’s Wine Guide, available at newsstands from 6 February, recommends 100 “must-have” wines for 2026 based on the criteria of renowned sommeliers and wine tourism experts such as Lluís Tolosa, director of the publication, as well as Ferran Centelles, Meritxell Falgueras, Maria José Huertas, Alicia Estrada and Zoltan Nagy. This recognition adds to the award for best wine tourism project that Montrubí received in the 2025 edition of the Guide.
