2021 Terroir Al Limit, Terra de Cuques Negre, Priorat DOQ, Spain.
Coming from different vineyards around Torroja del Priorat, this Terroir Al Limit Terra de Cuques Negre with 50% Carignan and 50% Grenache is a beautiful blend of local varieties, that, as the winery says, perfectly captures the complex soul and soils of the Torroja terroir. The deep color and dark floral aromatics alone captivate and seduce the senses and the full bodied and firmly tannic palate complete the mission with a gorgeous array of boysenberry, black cherry, plum, blueberry coulis and currant compote, as well as mineral crunchiness, savory Umami, wild shrubs, dried herbs, flinty stone and licorice. The Priorat is widely known for areas of black slate and contrasting clay and sparse soils, with the winery explaining that the Llicorella soil grown Carignan establishes the structure, backbone and acidity while clay-born Grenache lends the elegant (and richness) expression of red fruit. The organically and biodynamically farmed vines range from 25 to 40 years old and grow up at 400 meters in elevation, which explains the intensity or fruit and good acidity seen here. The winery goes on to mention that the carefully selected grapes are vinified for about 10 days in whole bunches with wild yeasts in cement and inox tanks before before being pressed off and then the wine sees close to 8 months of further aging, also in cement and inox (stainless tanks), which is a savvy move away from the more oak driven wines of the 90s and early 2000s. The Catalan DO Priorat was formally created in 1954, noted for its black slate and quartz soil known as llicorella, is one of only two wine regions in Spain to qualify as (a) DOCa, the highest qualification level for a wine region, sitting the Priorat alongside Rioja in significance.
The Terroir Al Limit, as noted in prior reviews, has old vines planted mainly to Garnatxa Negra and Carinyena for their red wines, along with Garnatxa Blanca and Macabeu for the whites, which all are hand harvested, with direct, whole cluster pressing for the whites, and whole cluster fermentation for the reds, as seen here, all with, as noted above, indigenous yeast, and fermented and aged in concrete or steel tanks exclusively. Proprietors Jaume Sabaté, Carlos Masia and the very influential Dominik Huber, along with the talented winemaker Tatjana Peceric, have made this small label one of the most sought after in the Priorat region of Spain with Terroir Al Limit winery now having world wide fame, especially with the speciality importer Eric Solomon at European Cellars getting them into the hands of the American market. The Terroir al Limit label is the flagship range of wines, like this one, deeply inspired by the very old winemaking traditions of Burgundy. Dominik Huber has now fully embraced a biodynamic approach to viticulture, coupled with a gentle, non-intrusive winemaking style that favors whole-bunch fermentation, and concrete or amphora aging as an alternative to oak, which had at times hid the true personality and sense of place. I found this wine to absolutely spot on, reminding me of Saint Cosme Gigondas and Maxime Magnon in Corbières, who Carignan based wines are some of my favorites. Priorat’s history is long one, with grape growing and wine production dating back to the 12th century, when the Carthusian Monastery of Scala Dei was founded in 1194, introducing the art of viticulture here. These carefully selected plots of Garnacha and Carignan, pay tribute to traditions, are individually expressed through this collection of site-specific wines that set Terroir Al Limit apart and make them highly coveted, and I highly recommend them all, especially this one.
($60 Est.) 95 Points, grapelive