2020 Clos I Terrasses Priorat Laurel - Spain, Catalunya, Priorat (10/30/2023)
I was curious to try a Laurel for some time now, as most reviews seem positive and I have had little Priorat – partially for the outsized and over extracted reputation of the wines and also, I love Rioja. That out of the way, I was very impressed. A big blast of perfectly ripe of black raspberry / kirsch hits early offering both immediate appeal and more importantly, this fresh as a daisy. I’m not sure what the oak regimen is here but I gather it is some combo of used vats and amphora based on reviews from prior vintages, and it shows though the wines purity with just a touch of richness from the wood. Fans out elegantly on the back end, and for $51 I’m happy. Great with homemade Birria Tacos. (94 points)
I’ve had a few and like them as well. Has more of what i think of as a graphite element compared to Rhone granache - i would not mix them up. I wish it was more like 25-30$ tho. Id love to try the big brother Erasmus some day!
Some Priorat wines can be huge and extracted, but many really are not, and despite the warm climate, you get mountain elevation and an awesome mineral note from the licorella, which is basically just slate…almost hard to call it soil in some places, it’s wild!
Seth, Good point about how different this comes across vs CdP (Rhone) not having that more savory aspect and yes, I too was thinking about grabbing the Erasmus by getting a buddy to go in on a bottle.
Benjamin - very cool and makes a lot of sense (the slate soil) on how it pencils out in the end. Can you recommend a few other producers to try that are around $50 and somewhat easy to find? Thanks!
Alvaro Palacios makes two around the price point. The “Les Terrases” and “Finca Dofi” are both excellent wines. Mas martinet also has a few more restrained wines that come in closer to $70-80 but are great. Clos Figueres also has a few at or under that price that are a little trickier to source, but well worth it (wine.com has had them historically).
Have enjoyed these wines for the last 4-5 yrs. Agree, always a nicely balanced and expressive Priorat. Picked up half a case of 2020’s after your post. Cheers!