Let's talk little, let's talk wine
Located in the heart of the DOQ Priorat, the Manyetes vineyard of Clos Mogador estate overlooks the village of Gratallops, in the province of Tarragona, Catalonia. Planted on steep llicorella slopes, these old vines benefit from a warm Mediterranean climate, tempered by continental influences and cool winds. Moderate altitude, low rainfall, and poor schist soils favor low yields and high concentration. This steep terroir, cultivated with respectful viticulture, gives rise to a wine that precisely expresses the minerality and depth characteristic of Priorat.
The Manyetes grapes, from old Carignan vines planted on llicorella slopes, are hand-harvested with rigorous sorting in the vineyard. After destemming, fermentation takes place in vats with gentle extractions to preserve the purity of the fruit and the mineral expression of the terroir. The wine is then aged for a long period in oak barrels to refine the tannins and gain complexity before bottling at the estate.
This wine reveals notes of ripe black fruits, juicy red fruits, and plum, enhanced by spicy touches of pepper and licorice, as well as delicate floral nuances. Woody and slightly smoky accents mingle with a marked mineral framework, typical of Priorat schists. On the palate, the texture is ample and dense, supported by firm but polished tannins, a fresh acidity that balances the richness, and a long, savory, persistent, and slightly saline finish.
Where are we traveling?
Priorat
It is located in the hinterland of Tarragona, Catalonia, about one hundred kilometers southwest of Barcelona, nestled in a natural amphitheater of steep hills and deep valleys. The vineyard spreads across dizzying slopes, sometimes with an inclination of more than 45 degrees, between 100 and 700 meters above sea level, in a spectacular landscape of narrow terraces clinging to the mountainside. The viticultural history dates back to the 12th century, when Carthusian monks founded the Scala Dei priory and planted the first vines, giving the region its name. After centuries of prosperity, phylloxera and rural exodus emptied Priorat of its winemakers, until a handful of visionary pioneers—René Barbier, Álvaro Palacios, Daphne Glorian, and a few others—rediscovered in the 1990s the extraordinary potential of these unique llicorella soils, a shiny black slate schist that forces the roots to plunge deep and imparts an intense, dark minerality to the wines. The climate is continental Mediterranean, hot and dry, tempered by the Catalan mistral—the cerç—which sweeps through the vines, and by the nocturnal coolness linked to the altitude, offering the grapes slow ripening and remarkable balance. Priorat is one of only two Spanish appellations to hold DOCa status, on par with Rioja, and has established itself thanks to its monumental and deep reds from Garnacha and Cariñena, often from centuries-old vines with tiny yields, complemented by ambitious cuvées integrating Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah, and a handful of rare and mineral whites from Garnacha Blanca and Macabeu, testaments to an extreme terroir that produces some of the most intense and moving wines in the entire Mediterranean.
The little history of the country
Spain
The history of wine in Spain is so ancient that no one really knows who first brought the vines to the region. By the time the Phoenicians arrived some 3,000 years ago and founded the present-day cities of Cádiz and Jerez, viticulture was already well established, and Spanish wines were widely traded throughout the Mediterranean and North Africa. You could say that Spain is a winemaking miracle. After years on the sidelines of the world of fine wines, it is now a major player. Investment and ambition in vineyards and wineries are resulting in increasingly rich, complex (often high in alcohol), and spicy reds that are gaining popularity with international consumers. Proud to have more land dedicated to vines than any other country, Spain is only now beginning to capitalize on this resource in a consistent way. Spain is a chaotic jumble of regions and subregions, much like its landscape is a chaotic jumble of incredibly rugged scenery. A glance at a map reveals the climatic diversity among Spain's many wine regions, from the lush, green vineyards of Galicia on the northern Atlantic coast to the parched vineyards of the southeastern Mediterranean. Spain's saving grace for viticulture is the average altitude of its vineyards, which is over 600 meters. Many Spanish vineyards are thus able to produce grapes with good color and acidity simply because nighttime temperatures are relatively low and the grapes don't ripen until after a sufficiently long growing season. But there is a real treasure trove to be found for those willing to dig, and now that a class of connoisseurs has developed in Spain, all sorts of ambitious investors have done their part to change the image of Spanish wine. Today, a new generation of winemakers has quietly begun to craft spectacular wines and experiment with grape varieties that would have been unthinkable not so long ago. Wine remains an important commodity and an integral part of Spanish culture.