At
Catacurian, we put a great emphasis on allowing our guests to
discover the great wines of the Priorat region. We do this by
making multiple visits to some of the areas best wineries where
the owners or the enologist take us around to visit the vineyards,
show us the details of their winery and how they make their
wines, and provide us with a complete wine tasting. These presentations
are very one-on-one and are done with great enthusiasm by all
of the wineries. They are extremely informative as to the whole
process of wine making, and one comes away with an excellent
knowledge of how the wines of this region are made and the philosophy
behind them.
We also have one wine tasting session in our own wine tasting
room, which is given by Jordi, the enologist and part owner
of the Conreria de Scala Dei winery. This is also a very relaxed
and highly interesting presentation.
Although
the Priorat wines have been produced for centuries, it is only
recently, in the past decade or so, that these have taken a
quantitative leap in quality that now puts them on the forefront
of Spanish wines. This revolution has been taking place in the
rest of Spain as well, and other regions such as Toro and Somontano,
to name a few, previously lacking in the production of quality
wines are now also producing some beautiful wines rivaling those
of the usual Rioja and Ribera del Duero denominations.
Catalonia
is probably best known for its white wines and cava (champagne
method), such as Freixenet and Codorniu which mostly emanate
from the Penedés region near Barcelona, but the constant increase
in production quality from D.O.C. (Denominació d'Origen Controlada)
Priorat wines and DO Montsant wines has put these in the spotlight
of wine connoisseurs worldwide. This is what makes this area
so interesting for a wine tour in Spain.
In
2001, the geographical area of El Priorat was divided into two
wine denominations: DOC Priorat, and DO Montsant. Geographically
the DO Montsant area has a donut shape and completely encircles
the DO Priorat area. They both share the same grape varietals,
the same climate, and the same sub-soil, however the DOC Priorat
region has the hard black slate surface that the vines grow
on and that is so characteristic of El Priorat. The main towns
of DO Montsant production are Falset, Marça, Capçanes, El Masroig,
Darmós, and Els Guiamets.The main areas of wine production in
the DOC Priorat region are Gratallops, Scala Dei, La Vilella,
La Morera de Montsant, Belmunt, Porrera, Poboleda, Torroja,
and El Molar. Together they total nearly 400 wine cultivators,
60 wine producers, and 30 bottling facilities.
One
of the advantages of the Priorat region is its temperate and
dry climate with hardly any rain whatsoever during the summer
months. The geographical factor which affects both the price
and taste of these wines is the fact that most vines are on
steep slopes of slate of volcanic origin which confer a mineral
character to the wines, and also preclude large automation of
the picking process, thus making it a very manual affair. The
most interesting wines of the area are the dry reds. These are
very concentrated, very high in color and alcohol content (14
to 15%), with great tanins, and are ready to drink at even a
young age.
The
grape varietals used for most wine production here are:
- Reds: Garnacha, Cariñena, Cabernet Sauvignon, syrah, and merlot.
- Whites: Macabeo, Garnacha Blanca, Pedro Ximenez.
Apart
from the reds and the whites, there is also a very particular
wine made here called Vi Ranci, or "rancid wine" which
is used as a dessert wine and in cooking. These are aged in
barrels at a higher than normal temperature to allow for a natural
oxidation process to take place. Another particular wine (although
it doesn't follow a fermentation process) is Mistela, a sweet
white wine also used as an accompaniment to desserts.
Following
is a list of wines from our cellar, which you will be discovering
during your stay:
Red Wines
DOC
Priorat:
- Clos de l'Obac produced by Costers del Siurana in Gratallops
- Miserere produced by Costers del Siurana in Gratallops
- Les Terrases produced by Alvaro Palacios in Gratallops
- La Conreria produced by La Conreria de Scala Dei in Scala Dei
- Iugiter Seleccio produced by La Conreria de Scala Dei in Scala Dei
- Odysseus produced by Vinedos de Ithaca in Gratallops
- Lo Givot produced by Celler del Pont in La Vilella Baixa
- Doix produced by Celler Mas Doix in Poboleda
- Embruix produced by Celler Vall-Llach in Porrera
- Vall-Llach produced by Celler Vall-Llach in Porrera
- Clos Mogador produced by Clos Mogador in Gratallops
- Mas Igneus produced by Mas Igneus in Poboleda
- Martinet Bru produced by Mas Martinet in Falset
- Clos Martinet produced by Clos Martinet in Falset
- Coma Vella produced by Viticultors Mas d'en Gil in Bellmunt del Priorat
- Clos Fonta produced by Viticultors Mas d'en Gil in Bellmunt del Priorat
- Primitiu de Bellmunt produced by Rosa Maria Bartolome
DO
Montsant:
- Les Sorts Vinyes Velles produced by Cooperativa Agricola Sant Bertomeu in El Masroig
- Mas.Roig produced by Cooperativa Agricola Sant Bertomeu in El Masroig
- Flor de Primavera produced by Celler de Capcanes in Capcanes
- Costers del Gravet produced by Celler de Capcanes in Capcanes
- Cabrida produced by Celler de Capcanes in Capcanes
- El Bugader produced by Joan D'Anguera in Darmos
- Finca L'Argata produced by Joan D'Anguera in Darmos
- La Planella produced by Joan D'Anguera in Darmos
- Pater produced by Ficaria Vins in La Figuera
- Elia produced by Ficaria Vins in La Figuera
- Dido produced by Venus Universal in Falset
- Venus produced by Venus Universal in Falset
- Orsus produced by Celler Orcella in Falset
White Wines
- Les Sorts Blanc produced by Cooperativa Agrícola Sant Bertomeu in El Masroig
- Les Brugueres produced by La Conreria de Scala Dei in Scala Dei
- Nona produced by La Conreria de Scala Dei in Scala Dei
- Kirie produced by Costers del Siurana in Gratallops
- Ustages produced by Costers del Siurana in Gratallops
- Barranc dels Clossos produced by Mas Igneus in Poboleda
- Odysseus produced by Vinedos Ithaca in Gratallops
- Coma Blanca produced by Mas d'en Gil in Bellmunt del Priorat
Dessert Wines
- Dolc de l'Obac, sweet red produced by Costers del Siurana in Gratallops
- Pansal del Calas, sweet red produced by Celler de Capcanes in Capcanes
- Mistela Vinyes Velles produced by Cooperativa Agricola Sant Bertomeu in El Masroig
- Vi Dolc, produced by Joan D'Anguera in Darmos
- Penelope blanc, sweet white produced by Vinedos Ithaca in Gratallops
- Penelope negre, sweet red produced by Vinedos Ithaca in Gratallops
Enjoy a Spanish Culinary Cooking and Gourmet Food Vacation in El Priorat, Spain. Our culinary vacations allow you to travel to, and learn how to cook delicious Catalan cuisine with daily hands-on cooking classes in our private hotel in the village of El Masroig. Offering wine tours of some of the Priorat's top wineries where the tastings and one-on-one winery tour visits will allow you to discover what makes Priorat wines world reknown.
