For more than four generations, the most important thing for the Mitjans family, located in Vilobi del Penedès 50 kms west of Barcelona and some 600 metres above sea level, has been the care of their vineyards with the aim of achieving the best quality for their wines and sparkling wines. The name Loxarel is an inversion of the variety they seek to perfect, Xarel-lo, the actual estate is called Masia Can Mayol. Now a new ethos has crept into the process, one that works on biodynamic lines and incorporates as much of nature as is possible in the winemaking process, down to using goats to de-leaf the vines. The estate has a strong line in Cava production, producing one cuvée that is laid sur latte for 10 years. It is not even disgorged, which makes for a fascinating wine, and one which everyone should taste if possible. What particularly intrigued us where the white wines, produced from Xarel-lo, Macabeu and Parellada, with one cuvée being fermented an aged in amphora. These wines have a freshness, ‘top notes’ that seems so rare from these varieties, and lack the earthy, slightly hard, nature of other wines we have tasted. In short they are fresh, aromatic and clean as a whistle, but with real charm and character.