Terroir al Límit Historic Red Priorat

Description

Terroir al Límit Historic Red Priorat is an unoaked red wine, a very smooth red wine full of red cherry, spice and liquorice aromas and flavours. I have both the 2018 and the 2021 vintages in stock. Some Priorat wines, like Rioja, can have too much sweetness from the ripe fruit flavours but in this instance they are very well balanced with fresh acidity. The fruit is also balanced with ripe tannins that show this wine will keep developing in the bottle for some time yet. The winemaking is as non-invasive as possible with manual harvest, whole bunches of grapes left for 10 days before pressing to contribute to the intensity of the fruit and gentle grape treading in concrete vats. Leaving the grapes as bunches has the added advantage of creating an oxygen-free environment which means that alcohol is created inside the grapes and no added yeasts are needed for the fermentation. All this care and attention leads to a very smooth and easy-to-drink style of wine.  Flavours include red cherries and fresh red berries like red currants and raspberries; there is also some peppery spice and liquorice notes on the nose and on the palate. In 2021 the alcohol is slightly lower and is balanced well with the crunchy fruit flavours, fresh acidity and tannins. The non-invasive winemaking continues post-fermentation and contributes to this very smooth and easy-to-drink style of wine which will keep developing in the bottle for some time yet.

The interesting difference between the vintages is that the 2018 was aged in concrete and the 2021 in stainless steel tanks. Both are designed to allow the purity of fruit to reveal itself as there is no oak to distract the drinker. Priorat seems to be the up-and-coming wine region for unoaked Garnacha, albeit there is some Carignan or Cariñena mixed in here, and Terroir al Límit Historic Red Priorat is up there as one of the finest examples.

Priorat wines have the same DOCa status as Rioja wines (DOQ being the Catalan equivalent) but are generally less well-known than Rioja; in fact they are the only two Spanish wines at this highest qualification level. Terroir Al Limit was only set up in 2001 but old vines of Grenache and Carignan respond well to organic farming (certified organic) and biodynamic practices producing better quality and more intensely flavoured grapes which are produced using traditional wine-making techniques inspired by Burgundy into superb wine. The trend in Priorat is this lighter, unoaked style of Garnacha where the naturally-high alcohol of the grape is reined in with cautious vineyard management, picking at just the right time. This style is in contrast to the often richer, heavier Grenache Noir wines of the Rhône which tend to be higher in alcohol. Both delicious, but different!