Description

Country: Spain

Region: Priorat

Variety: Red Blend (60% Garnacha, 40% Carinena)

Terroir: black slate and quartz soil known locally as Llicorella

Winemaking: destemmed and softly crushed; fermentation in stainless steel, cement, and large wooden vats; remontage and punching dow; 10 months in French oak all of which was used to age previous vintages; 80% of the oak is one, two and three years old

Alvaro Palacios is arguably the leading figure in the winemaking revolution that took place in Spain in the 1980s. Energetic and passionate, Palacios admires Burgundy and other wine regions with a monastic past. A media-friendly maverick, he has become a true celebrity in the world of Spanish wine. He is currently in charge of a small wine kingdom which produces some of the best labels from Bierzo, Rioja and Priorat.

In 2007, Alvaro changed the sources of fruit for the Les Terrasses cuvee to only old vines or ‘Velles Vinyes’ in Catalan. In doing so, he reduced the production of this wine by almost a 3rd and increased the quality a great deal. The wine comes from mostly estate vineyards with some purchased fruit from select lots of old vine Garnacha. The harvesting is all done by hand, and the estate vineyards are farmed organically and biodynamically. This wine is earthy and rustic with an inconspicuous structure. A bold and powerful Priorat.