The Competition for the Best New-Expression Ciders and Apple Derivatives at the 45th Nava Cider Festival 2022 has chosen the ice cider Valverán 20 Apples 2020, produced by Masaveu Wineries at its Sariego cider house, as the best ice cider. For the fourth consecutive year, Valverán has been awarded the top prize in the ice cider category in this blind-tasting competition.
The winners in other categories were Trabanco, Sidra Fran, Lagares Asturianos, Paca y Tola Bebidas, and Viuda Angelón.
The town of Nava hosts this weekend the Cider Festival, declared a Festival of National Tourist Interest, which this year celebrates its forty-fifth edition. This celebration began in 1969 to honor a beverage deeply rooted in the region and to highlight the craftsmanship and quality of these products.
Valverán 20 Apples has been awarded in various prestigious national and international competitions, such as Gilbert & Gaillard, the International Gala Cider Exhibition, CINVE, the Great Lakes International Cider & Perry Competition, and the Global Cider Masters.
Valverán 20 Apples Ice Cider
Valverán was founded in 1998, but it wasn’t until 2007 that this ice cider was created, becoming the first and most exclusive ice cider in the Iberian Peninsula. The name Valverán 20 Apples comes from the number of apples needed to make each 37.5 cl bottle, as it contains the concentrated juice of at least 20 apples.
This beverage is produced through a complex process that involves freezing at -20°C, followed by fermentation for 10 months and aging on fine lees for 12 months. The entire process usually takes around two years from the moment the apples are harvested until the bottle reaches the consumer, while preserving its initial fruity and sensory qualities.
To create this exclusive and highly prized product, the visionary character of José Masaveu, CEO of Masaveu Wineries, was essential. This represents his most personal project within the family’s ventures, backed by nearly ten years of research and experimentation. It is the only one of Masaveu Wineries five projects rooted in its native land, Asturias.
Today, 40 hectares registered as organic, located in the Protected Designation of Origin Sidra de Asturias, specifically in Finca El Rebollar in Sariego (Asturias), with 20,000 apple trees of 11 different varieties (Blanquina, Xuanina, Regona, Raxao, Fuentes, Collaos, De la Riega, Verdialona, Perico, Durona de Tresali, and San Roqueña), make it possible to produce a limited edition of 20,000 bottles of this distinguished ice cider full of nuances. It can be defined as a fresh and surprising drink that pairs perfectly with foie, cheeses, and mildly sweet desserts.
It can be purchased through the Masaveu Wineries online store or by clicking here.
Masaveu Wineries
The Masaveu family began investing in the wine sector in 1974, when they acquired Bodega Murua in Rioja Alavesa. However, the family’s vineyard plantations date back to the mid-19th century, specifically in Castellar del Vallès, the family’s place of origin, where Federico Masaveu Rivell first took the steps that his descendants would continue a century later.
Since then, Masaveu Wineries has grown to become a benchmark in the industry, recognized for the quality of its wines across various DOs and for its environmental philosophy and utmost respect for the land, on which it owns its own vineyard plantations. Thanks to these vineyards, each bottle conveys the unique personality of its terroir. In this way, all the projects undertaken by Masaveu Wineries across different regions share a common denominator: Fillaboa (DO Rías Baixas), Leda (Vino de la Tierra de Castilla y León), Murua (DOCa Rioja), Pagos de Araiz (DO Navarra), and Valverán (Asturias).
