# Biko (2023)

- **Producer:** Cal Cols
- **Colour:** red
- **Type:** sparkling
- **Grapes:** Merlot
- **Region:** Catalonia, Spain
- **Style:** Natural
- **Alcohol:** 12.0%
- **Average price:** €20
- **Vegan:** Yes
- **Contains sulphites:** Yes
- **When to drink:** Now
- **Serving temperature:** 6–8 °C
- **Aromas & flavours:** cherry, plum, rose, bread

## About this wine

Cal Cols is a micro-estate situated in Can Rossell de La Serra within Alt Penedès, Catalonia, managed by Ixabel and Lluís Masachs. Lluís represents the sixth generation of a winemaking lineage that has tilled these soils for centuries. Decades before natural wine gained global fame, the family cultivated their estate organically alongside fruit trees and almonds. Biko reflects their minimal-intervention philosophy in crafting an ancestral sparkling wine that showcases their terroir.

## Interesting facts

- Biko 2023 is a rare single-varietal red pét-nat crafted from 100% Merlot.
- The Masachs family has practiced organic farming in Alt Penedès for nearly 30 years.
- The wine is bottled unfiltered and unfined with zero added sulfites.

## Food pairing

This dry, sparkling red pét-nat combines lively effervescence, high natural acidity, and low tannins. The persistent bubbles slice through rich, salty cured meats and fatty proteins, while bright plum and cherry aromas harmonize beautifully with savory tomato sauces and wood-fired crusts.

## Wine making process

Biko 2023 is produced using the Método Ancestral (Pétillant Naturel) process from 100% Merlot. The grapes undergo a short skin maceration to extract gentle color and tannin before undergoing spontaneous fermentation with indigenous wild yeasts. The wine is bottled mid-fermentation to capture natural carbonation in the bottle. It ages on its fine lees and is released without added sulfites, disgorgement, fining, or filtration.