# Clandestina Blanc Sense Papers (2024)

- **Producer:** Bodega Clandestina
- **Colour:** white
- **Type:** still
- **Grapes:** Xarel-lo
- **Region:** Catalonia, Spain
- **Style:** Natural
- **Alcohol:** 11.5%
- **Average price:** €22
- **Vegan:** Yes
- **Contains sulphites:** No
- **When to drink:** Now or Later
- **Serving temperature:** 8–10 °C
- **Aromas & flavours:** lemon, grapefruit, peach, fennel, herbaceous

## About this wine

Bodega Clandestina is the personal project of young Catalan winemaker Ferran Lacruz, founded in Sant Martí Sarroca in the Alt Penedès region of Catalonia. The project deliberately operates outside the official D.O. Penedès classification system to avoid regulatory constraints. The name Blanc Sense Papers translates to White Without Papers, reflecting its status as an unclassified, natural wine focused purely on expressing the authentic character of old-vine Xarel·lo grown on calcareous clay-limestone soils.

## Interesting facts

- The name 'Sense Papers' means 'Without Papers', referencing its intentional production outside official D.O. regulations.
- The grapes are harvested in three separate passes over three weeks to balance fresh acidity, ripeness, and skin texture.
- Aged using a combination of glass demijohns, neutral oak barrels, and stainless steel with zero added sulfites.

## Food pairing

The wine's vibrant acidity and chalky mineral focus pair exceptionally well with fresh seafood and shellfish, while its subtle skin-contact texture allows it to complement savory poultry and aged goat cheese without overpowering the dish.

## Wine making process

Crafted from 50 to 65-year-old bush vines harvested in three distinct passes across three weeks. The first pass (65%) is direct pressed and aged in glass demijohns. The second pass (25%) undergoes a short skin maceration before pressing and glass aging. The final pass (10%) is destemmed and macerated on skins for three weeks before aging in a neutral 500-liter oak barrel. The components are blended, undergo full spontaneous malolactic fermentation, and are bottled unfined, unfiltered, and with zero added sulfites.