'Camins del Priorat' Carinyena-Garnatxa 2020 1.5L Magnum

The ‘Camins’ are the pathways of Priorat (in Castellano, ‘Caminos’), linking villages up and down the hillsides from valley floor to mountain top. The regional council has recently completed renovation of many old Camins, so one can now happily hike from place to place away from the motorways. Fond of a walk and a think, Álvaro named his entry-level release after these paths.

‘Camins del Priorat’ is a regional wine, taken from younger vines below the hilltop extremes, all throughout the hills and valleys along the pathways of Priorat. Typically, it’s about 2/3 Garnacha and 1/3 Samsó. The vineyards which give fruit for Camins signify a rebirth, with wonderful viticulture, great care and expense afforded to the project of re-planting the hills of Priorat with its own indigenous genetic Garnachas. De-stemmed, fermented in open concrete, wood and inox vats, and aged 8 months in larger used French oak. Flint, granite, almond, lavender, cherries, pomegranate and Mediterranean freshness – it’s Priorat Garnacha!

The joyous Priorat Garnacha tells of orange juice and ruby grapefruit perkiness are abundant, being the last note on the nose and the cheeriest aftertaste, leaving the wine fresh and vibrant on nose and in  mouth. Its darker elements are herbed and spiced, nutty tree wood, rose hip and parsnip, and ashy-earth. It’s both prettily-fruited and mineral-edged, with a deep, pure earthiness and fine, delicate tannin. Abundantly energetic and aflow with red florality in the mouth and on the nose, as per the label.