Priorat: the lowdown on its new appellation system
Wednesday 17 June
If you’re a member of just-drinks you can get access to my article on Priorat’s new appellation system at just-drinks.com
If not, here’s a full run down on what’s happening in the Catalan region.
The Priorat Consejo Regulador has just approved a new Burgundy-like pyramid for its wines from the 2007 vintage.
At the bottom of the pyramid will be generic Priorat DOCa wines. Sitting above this, will be 12 named villages such as Gratallops, Poboleda, Escala Dei and Falset. These villages will now be able to label their wines as Falset and so on.
René Barbier’s Clos Mogador sits alone at the top of the pyramid. Funnily enough René was the instigator of the proposal 15 years ago and his vineyard has managed to achieve its own domaine status…
Barbier was keen to stress that there were great terroirs in Priorat and they needed to be championed. ‘People are obsessed with brands in Spain but it’s not Vega Sicilia that is important it’s the terroir. There are great terroirs in Priorat and we need to talk about them.’
Gratallops-based producer and supporter of the changes, Alvaro Palacios, criticised transient Spanish brands and claimed the region needed to emphasise the unchanging individual areas of Priorat. ‘Gratallops will never disappear and it makes a brand for everyone,’ he said.
However, I’m not sure this is a great idea for anyone apart from the producers. Isn’t it better to know the good producers with the old vines and low yields than which village it comes from? While wine has been made here for centuries, it has only recently witnessed a renaissance. The phrase running before it can walk springs to mind.
Barbier’s next door neighbour Carlos Pastrana at Clos de L’Obac, doesn’t think much of the idea either. If you wish to make an Gratallops wine, all the fruit must come from that area. ‘This is a marketing question,’ he said. ‘The majority of the wineries buy and sell grapes from all over the region.’
How the authorities will keep a check on which grapes go into which vat is another issue. Barbier told me each grower will have an electronic card that identifies the parcel’s provenance when it arrives at the winery and can be swiped like a bank card. Come on guys, I’m not convinced there won’t be some sneaky cross blending.
What do you think? Too much too soon? Greater confusion for the trade and consumer? Would love to hear your thoughts.
Hi Rebecca,
I knew this had got you intrigued!!! I wanted to clarify what happens if there is a village shared by two wine appellations such as Falset - better known as DO Montsant (and also El Molar). As the village itself is physically outside the DOCa Priorat, but a lot of its surrounding land is within the DOCa Priorat, the committee has decided to use the names of the parcels/estates (all areas around villages here have traditional and historic names).
In the case of Falset, it will be known as “Els Masos de Falset” as the land historically known as “Els Masos” falls within the boundary of DOCa Priorat, although is within the municipal boundary of Falset. An example of a producer making wine in “Els Masos” is Capafons-Ossó winery whose top wine “Mas de Masos” has been made since 1991. The winery also has DO Montsant wines also in Falset and their Montsant estate is known as “Masia Esplanes”. Again, more great Montsant wines for you to check out when you are next here - “Roigenc” rosé by Capafons-Ossó is delicious!!!
Take care and keep up the good work!
- by Rachel Ritchie, freelance Priorat Guide
Marketing at it’s finest, plain and simple. Not to mention another layer of stuff to explain to the already befuddled consumer. This will only provide collectors more justification for why they should pay such ridiculous prices for these wines.
Oh, and it’s true that most of the wines are blended from various sites, because only the old guard who got there first, own enough land in one space to make a wine from one area.
- by Ryan Opaz, catavino.net