Defined by old-vine Mediterranean varieties, the tiny wine-growing region of Priorat in northeastern Spain rapidly rose to international acclaim in the late ‘90s and made a name for itself producing brooding, tarry, spicy and minerally attractive wines charged with concentration and fine tannins dialed into the fruit – from the powerful carignan (locally known as samso), bright grenache, spicy syrah and sometimes even from dense cabernet sauvignon and merlot.
Unsurprisingly, yield from the poor, schist soils in the dry, sun-drenched terraced landscapes of Catalonia is low, and adding in the high production costs on the rugged, steep slopes of the Priorat vineyards often justifies the premium prices for the wines, with many retailing at well over $100 a bottle. Yet more reasonable interpretations of Priorat wine exist, and many tick the boxes for freshness, vibrancy and drinkability, which are great introductions to the aesthetics accentuated in the contemporary wine world, where authenticity, layers and finesse deserve everyone’s attention.
While low yield from old vines translates into a real depth of flavors, it does not necessarily mean the wines have more weight or fatness. On the contrary, they can still be linear, intellectual and even ethereal. Some of the top Priorat wines come with a deep, brooding color and naturally high density and concentration, but they are never thick or heavy. Instead, they show more calculation and restraint with precise, polished tannins, glossy, fresh blue fruit, perfumed blue flowers and mesmerizing minerality. Some are great examples for understanding how natural concentration departs from heaviness in wine.
Lesser Priorat wines, however, can deliver an undissolvable chunk of richness marred by stewed fruit and oak storm. Some of these wines also lack natural acidity and become hefty, cloyingly syrupy or essence-like. That’s usually not old vine coming into play, but is rather a clumsy winemaking disguise for lesser fruit coerced into a deliberate concentration or wines made to fit a template and suit a particular taste.
PRIORAT’S SURGE
With just over 2,000 hectares of vines on the craggy slopes and foothills of the Montsant mountain range, the surge of Priorat is an astounding story. The history of winemaking there goes back to the early 12th century, when Carthusian monks established a priory and planted vines, passing the resulting name – “Priorat” – to the region. But the international acclaim is a recent occurrence.
When the present-day Priorat wine pioneer Rene Barbier first initiated his “Clos” movement (referring to enclosed vineyards) in Priorat with his “Clos Magador” project in the early 1980s, few people probably foresaw how successful it would become – in fact, it led to Priorat becoming one of only two appellations in Spain conferred with the highest DOQ/DOCa status.
Barbier was eventually joined by a few friends, including Carles Pastrana, Daphne Glorian, Joseph Luis Perez, and, of course, one of the most influential winemakers today in Priorat, Alvaro Palacios. They soon started making wines that transmitted a sense of place through nuanced, single-vineyard expressions. As a result, Clos Mogador, Clos Dofi (now known as Finca Dolfi), Clos Martinet, Clos de l’Obac and Clos Erasmus – all around the small town of Gratallops – began shaping Priorat into what it is today.
Now, the initial ravings about Priorat seemed to have cooled a bit, and some Priorat wines have fine-tuned themselves along with the evolving wine aesthetics, where freshness, class, precision and purity are given more weight than before. New producers like Terroir Al Limit have pushed this style shift with promising wines that confidently showcase transparency, focus and authenticity.
While wines like Palacios’ petite and ancient single-vineyard offerings such as L’Ermita and Les Aubaguetes are always great sips, they are also wines made in tiny quantity and tagged with super-premium prices. But we can recommend some of his more entry-level wines, such as Camins del Priorat 2019 – a great buy for about $30 made from a blend of younger vines of grenache, carignan, syrah, cabernet sauvignon and merlot all sourced from Priorat, including grapes from Palacios’ own estate vineyards as well as purchased grapes.
Look out for these eight bottles below, all rated 92-plus points and under $40. They should be a fantastic introduction to where Priorat currently stands, and, most important, they are proof that Priorat will continue to surprise even in a lower price range.
– Zekun Shuai, Associate Editor
Alvaro Palacios Priorat Camins del Priorat 2019 – JS94
Wine.com: $26.99
Vivino: $27.71
Alvaro Palacios Priorat Les Terrasses 2018 – JS93
Zachys.com: $34.99
Clos Figueres Priorat Serras del Priorat 2018 – JS93
KLWines.com: $34.99
Terroir Históric Priorat Negre 2018 – JS93
U.S. Price: $31
Torres Priorat Salmos 2017 – JS93
Zachys.com: $37.99
Wine.com: $37.99
Bernard Magrez Priorat Herencia Del Padri 2018 – JS92
International Price: $19
Clos Berenguer Priorat Clos de Tafall 2017 – JS92
U.S. Price: $21
Scala Dei Priorat Prior 2017 – JS92
U.S. Price: $31
