I still have quite a few wines like this from my early days of wine collecting - stuff that was highly rated or recommended in the $15-30 price range (this was $18 from Wine Library in 2009). Wines that could provide a great quality for the price, but that no one, including me, ever expected would spend a dozen years in my cellar. Many people would assume wines like this one to be hopelessly past prime, but over and over again I’m surprised how well so many of them - from both the old and new world - hold up. At first this wine seemed to be over the hill, with some brownish tinge to the color, balsamic aroma and leathery mouthfeel, but the longer it’s in my glass the more I’m enjoying it. The sweet and intense red cherry fruit is sightly raisiny in character yet still somehow bright, the tannins are integrated but still firm, and the acid is balanced and mouth watering. Pretty classic Grenache-Carignane that would hold its own against Priorats costing several multiples of its price. Sometimes wine makes you smile (most times).
I still have quite a few wines like this from my early days of wine collecting - stuff that was highly rated or recommended in the $15-30 price range (this was $18 from Wine Library in 2009). Wines that could provide a great quality for the price, but that no one, including me, ever expected would spend a dozen years in my cellar. Many people would assume wines like this one to be hopelessly past prime, but over and over again I’m surprised how well so many of them - from both the old and new world - hold up. At first this wine seemed to be over the hill, with some brownish tinge to the color, balsamic aroma and leathery mouthfeel, but the longer it’s in my glass the more I’m enjoying it. The sweet and intense red cherry fruit is sightly raisiny in character yet still somehow bright, the tannins are integrated but still firm, and the acid is balanced and mouth watering. Pretty classic Grenache-Carignane that would hold its own against Priorats costing several multiples of its price. Sometimes wine makes you smile (most times).
Apr 11th, 2021
Terra Alta, Tarragona, Catalunya, Spain
