A little region with big, huge wines
Priorat is the perfect red wine for summer
Hola friends, today is Memorial Day here in the U.S., and while it is a day to reflect and honor, it is also the unofficial start to the summer season. You will hopefully have some time outside, if the weather cooperates wherever you are, with your loved ones…and you might also be firing up your grill! And once grilling season is in full swing, if you are a lover of wine, you are probably thinking about what wines will go best with the amazing things you will be cooking. And I’ve got just the wine for you!
I want to take you to the tiny wine region of Priorat, in the northeast of Spain about an hour south of Barcelona. People, it is absolutely breathtaking here. The region is almost completely surrounded by mountains—the Montsant, the Prades, and the Llabería—but it is also just 15 miles to the Mediterranean. The slopes are very steep and farmed into terraces, adding to the beauty of the landscape, and the soil is very rocky and slate-based, which makes it perfect for growing vines!
Wines have been made in Priorat for more than 800 years! Some of the first vines were planted by Carthusian monks, who made wine for themselves. Today, you can still visit the ruins of the monastery, and of course taste the incredible wine from right around there!
Priorat was first recognized as a region in 1932, but due to the Civil War in Spain and then the second World War, it wasn’t widely known until 1989, when a group of producers…known as the “Gang of Five”...began making wines to compete with some of the famous big reds of the time like the Super Tuscan blends. People, remember the 1992 Barcelona Olympics? All eyes were on us in Spain, and even the famous Robert Parker started drinking the wines of Priorat!
Most of the Priorat that you can buy here in the U.S. is red, made mostly from Garnatxa (the Catalan word for Grenache) or Carinyena (Carignan). You might recognize both of those grapes from the south of France, but the climate in Priorat gives them a deeper, richer, and bolder—and if you ask me, better!—flavor. The soil is known as “licorcella,” which means “slate” in Catalan. The hot summers give the grapes deep flavor and complexity, and the wines are usually high in alcohol, over 14%.
Another interesting thing about Priorat is that the quality of the wines is reinforced by a village category system (Vi de Vila), which is very similar to Burgundy’s system. This idea, created by the Consejo Regulador (which oversees wine in Spain), guarantees quality for the wines coming from Priorat. Today, twelve villages fall under the Vi de Vila category, so only 46 wines are able to put that on their label. And the regulations say that to qualify as a “Vi de Vila'' wine, all of the grapes used have to come from vineyards directly from that village. Producers such as my friend Álvaro Palacios have been big influences in bringing these quality standards to Priorat. So people, if you see “Vi de Vila'' on your wine label, you know you are getting something really special.
If you’ve never had a Priorat before, how to describe it? You can taste the sun being absorbed by the steep, terraced hillsides…you can smell the unique slate soil…you can almost hear the Mediterranean Sea off in the distance. There’s a beautiful range of flavors—from bold and tannic and fruity, with lots of acid, to smooth, velvety, silky and almost a little smoky. If it were me, I’d buy a few bottles from different producers, so you can appreciate the beautiful differences between each one, while being transported to the sunny, ancient villages of the region.
And I know you’ll ask me, “Hey José, this is all great, but what do I EAT with these wines?” Not everyone loves red wine in the summer, but people, if you’re going to drink red wine this time of year, this is the one to drink, because it goes so perfectly with anything you’d put on the grill—maybe a ribeye with some piquillo peppers or some asparagus with romesco. Priorat is also known for its olives, so you can’t go wrong enjoying it with some marinated olives (or cherries served like olives !), jamón, and strong Spanish cheeses.
Have you ever tried Priorat? What did you think?
José. I agree totally. I know Priorat well and love it dearly. The dedication of the growers working the steep costers (slopes) and winemakers is phenomenal, the results are astounding, even for the entry level wines. The price may seem high, compared to other wines, but when you consider all the effort invested in the tiny plots. The Vi de Vila wines are worth every penny.
Priorat is one of my absolute favorite wines! I love to share it with friends since they always have never heard of it but always end up loving it. Great choice!