Martinet Bru 2005

This is a new import from the guys at Toro wines and there is plenty to like here. This is the second wine of Clos Martinet, it’s a little bit different from it’s contemoraries as its about half Merlot, with the rest made up of cabernet sauvignon and garnacha. The merlot gives is an open weave, lush feel which is ofset by the rocky minerals and firm acid. The oak work is mainly in older french oak, so you get a good look at the fruit without that huge lick of oak. Classy stuff.

La Perla del Priorat ‘Noster’ 2005

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I’ve got a couple of entry level on the tasting bench at the moment, this is the first. This was a big hit for me last year, a wine from Priorat at this price level and quality was quite rare at the time. But now wines in the $40-$60 price bracket are the must have item for many importers. And who’s complaining, seeing as the top wines from the region are going up again this year? There doesn’t seem to be one style at the price point, some are big rounded, easy drinking things, others are a bit tighter and focused. This falls into the later camp…

Torres ‘Salmos’ 2005

Torres started making wine in Priorat a couple of years ago, they aren’t just buying some grapes and renting some space, instead they built a new winery, bought some vineyards and have kept very true to the style and nature of this tiny region. This is the first release, it is cracking value. A blend of garnacha, syrah, carinena, and cabernet sauvignon bunged in new french oak for 9 months. This is much less structured and tannic than many wines from this region, otherwise all the trademark characters are there. Personally, I think it’s good to see the softer side of Priorat from time to time.

Font de le Figuera 2005

A super quick note today. This is the young vines wine from these guys, Garnarcha and Carineña planted in 1998. Surprisingly, this had huge amounts of sediment, so do decant just to get rid of the muck or be very careful pouring it.

Les Terresses 2006

This has reinforced my position that wines from Priorat are better drunk within 5 years of release. It’s a cracking wine right now, minerally and bursting with flavours that make it well worth the price of admission. It’s not the they don’t age, it’s just that they don’t look as good old as they do young (kind of like the rest of us). Of course there are exceptions to every rule…

Pasanau La Morera De Montsant Priorat 2003

A very tasty and affordable Priorat. It’s made from a blend of Garnacha, Cabernet, and Merlot from older vineyards and lives in in 1 year old American and French oak for 12 months. It’s bright and fresh, with a herby/medicinal character that may turn a few people off, but I like it.

Mas d’en Gil Coma Vella 2002

It is this kind of wine that leads to a few of the comments I made on the post about the Clos Fonta. In vintages like 2002, which wasn’t a great vintage, the producers still have the high costs of everything in the vineyard being done by hand, plus lower production and quality to boot. So all these costs (and some profit) get passed on to consumers, which would make this wine a hard sell at $90. Then again the 2004 will probably fly out the door. The punters expect something special at this price range, unfortunatley nature doesn’t always play along.

Mas d’en Gil ‘Clos Fonta’ 2001

I’ve been a big fan of Priorat in the past, but the price rises over the past couple of vintages have pushed these wines into a whole new price bracket. Plus they can be challenging, confronting wines that are more for the head than the heart. That doesn’t sound like fun, does it? Well, maybe in a fetish kind of way. Actually, the cheaper wines can be much more enjoyable than ultra expensive ones. At times I think you get much better value over the other side of the Iberian Peninsula in the Douro Valley.

Clos Mogador 2005

I've had a couple of requests to open a bottle of this wine, so I ducked into Boccaccio Cellars on Sunday and picked up a bottle. I went home decanted for an hour or so while I cooked up a couple of good steaks. It looked a bit odd to start with and really not [...]

La Perla del Priorat ‘Noster’ 2004

I've been lucky to look at a couple of very good entry level wines from Priorat over the past couple of weeks, and this is anther ripper. The Noster is made from 7 to 18 year old garnacha (55%) and crineña (45%) vines. Aging is older french oak for half the blend, while the other half [...]