Four Generations, Zero Compromise
In Pla del Penedès, Toni Carbó tends 28 hectares of vines that have never known a drop of chemicals. Celler La Salada — named for the farmhouse where his grandfather and great-grandfather worked — produces wines of crystalline purity from 80+ year old indigenous vines. No sulfur. No tillage. Just Catalan tradition.
From Mas Candí to La Salada
Toni Carbó is a fourth-generation vigneron from Parellada village, 40 kilometers west of Barcelona. In 2006, he built Mas Candí with his best friend Ramón Jané, establishing a reputation for honest, organic wines. But Toni dreamed of something more personal — a return to his family's origins.
In 2012, he launched Celler La Salada with his wife Anna Serra. The name honors the farmhouse where his great-grandfather lived and worked, and where his grandfather (also Toni Carbó) grew up working the land. His grandfather saved money from that hard labor to buy his own land — seeking out areas no one wanted: shady plots near the river, dominated by pure limestone slopes. Today, these "undesirable" plots are recognized as prime vineyard land.
"Toni Carbó makes fresh, unadorned, fully transparent wines that transmit the calcareous Penedès region with no frills."
— On the La Salada style
Living Soil
The 28 hectares of La Salada (22 owned by Toni, 8 by family and friends who work together) have never been touched by chemicals. Not just organic — these vineyards have been farmed sustainably for generations, preserving a vibrant ecosystem that conventional agriculture destroys.
Toni practices biodynamic agriculture, planting grains between vine rows to balance nitrogen levels naturally. The vineyards are never tilled — this is true minimal intervention agriculture, allowing root systems to develop fully and microbial life to thrive undisturbed. The objective is maximum biodiversity in the soil, creating natural balance within the environment.
The vines have never seen pesticides, herbicides, or synthetic fertilizers. Generations of sustainable farming have preserved soil vitality that chemical agriculture destroys in seasons.
Toni never plows his vineyards. This radical approach preserves fungal networks and soil structure, allowing vines to express true terroir through deep, established root systems.
Following biodynamic principles, Toni plants grains between rows for nitrogen balance. The calendar guides all vineyard work, respecting cosmic rhythms and natural cycles.
"The objective is to have the highest variety of life in the soil and create a natural balance within the environment."
— Farming philosophy
Single Parcels
Toni works with heritage vineyards of extraordinary age and character. These single plots form the backbone of La Salada's vineyard-designated wines, each expressing a distinct facet of Penedès terroir.
A steep north-facing slope between Pla del Penedès and Subirats, planted 1982. 1.1 hectares of Xarel-lo on calcareous clay soils at elevation. The cool exposure maintains acidity in this powerful white variety.
Two special plots: the main L'Ermot parcel (1 ha, planted 1942 on clay-calcaire) and El Gana (planted 1965 on sandy loam adjacent to Toni's house). Both give naturally low yields of concentrated Macabeu.
A previously abandoned vineyard in Castelladral at 600m elevation, planted over 90 years ago. Densely planted for horse work on calcareous clay. Toni nursed these ancient Sumoll vines back to health.
"Under the Almonds" — a special plot surrounded by forests and almond groves. Sandy soils on relatively young vines (planted 2013) produce concentrated, powerfully aromatic Malvasia de Sitges.
〰️ Fifth Generation 〰️
Toni and Anna are raising the fifth generation of Carbos to follow the family path. Their children are growing up among these vines, continuing a lineage that stretches back to the original farmhouse La Salada — a legacy of sustainable viticulture that has never known chemical intervention.
Grandfather's Tradition
Toni restored his grandfather's original cellar, pressing, vinifying, and aging all fruit in the same space where his family has made wine for generations. No chemical additions — including sulfur — are made in the cellar. Spontaneous fermentations with indigenous yeasts. Long maceration periods, just as the old Pagès (Catalan farmers) used to do.
Toni uses traditional underground Catalan fermenters called "cairons" — large vessels lined with tile where wine ferments and ages. These old-school vessels provide natural temperature regulation and a connection to ancestral winemaking methods.
Following tradition, Toni allows extended skin contact — weeks rather than days. La Bufarella sees five months of maceration. El Raig Verd macerates for two weeks. This patience extracts complexity and texture that rushed modern methods miss.
Many radical natural winemakers from France come to Toni's vineyards to buy grapes, trusting his work in the field and sharing his philosophy of responsible farming. In the cellar, his wines express Vi Català as it was when his grandfather made it: fresh, characterful, and alive.
The La Salada Wines
All wines are made with zero added sulfur, spontaneous fermentation with indigenous yeasts, no fining, and no filtration. From single-vineyard expressions to field blends of native varieties.