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Álvaro Palacios Vi de Vila Gratallops 2021

Álvaro Palacios Vi de Vila Gratallops

2021
A proud Village Wine
94-96
PARKER

Other bottle sizes and vintages

£75.50

/ 0.75 L btl
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Spec sheet

TypeRed wine
Region
Grapes
Producer
AllergensContains sulfites
Alcohol contenti14.5%
Production16,000 - 19,000 bottles

The wine

A Vi de Vila (villages in the Burgundy hierarchy) is a wine produced using grapes emanating exclusively from one specific municipality; in this case, originating from the beautiful town of Gratallops. The Priorat QDO, following the path taken by the renowned French region, has been a pioneer in Spain as regards differentiating and identifying the origin of its wines. For Álvaro Palacios, the Gratallops wines must be mature, not very dark in colour, with radiance and suppleness, red fruit rather than black and bring out the slate soils with a rugged feel.

What does this wine taste like?

It’s a wine that’s very fragrant on the nose, with an abundance of fruit, touches of balsamic notes and distinct hints of slate and earthy dust. After a few minutes in the glass, liquorice, cherries and refreshing notes of sage, fennel and thyme appear. It comes over as open and elegant, intermingling flowers and nuts with Mediterranean herbs. It’s profound and voluminous on the palate, while still being fresh and juicy. There’s the feel of the soft pulp of the grapes coated in tannin, bestowing distinction. Its excellent acidity results in it proving very long and highlights its more mineral side.

Drinking and storing

It’s ripe for enjoyment following release, although it promises to continue on top form for up to 7-9 years after its vintage year.

It should ideally be served in a tall, wide goblet-type glass at a temperature of about 16 ºC.

Serve between 15ºC and 16ºC

Food pairing

Cuts of beef and lamb are the perfect companions, especially when grilled or pan-fried with aromatic herbs.

carnes-rojas
Red meat

Ratings and awards

202194-96 PK
202094+ PK95 SK
201994 PK95 PN95 SK
201894 PK95 PN94 SK
201794 PK96 PN95 SK
201692-94 PK94 PN93 SK
PK: ParkerPN: PeñínSK: Suckling

Wine critics reviewsReviews by Parker and Parker

The 2019 Gratallops is a village wine produced with grapes from different Gratallops vineyards, which are mentioned on the label, with a varietal breakdown of 87% Garnacha, 12% Cariñena and 1% white grapes (Garnacha Blanca, Macabeo and Pedro Ximenez) from organically farmed vineyards. It fermented in oak vats with indigenous yeasts and matured in large oak vats for 13 months. There is a lot of finesse and elegance, tons of red fruit, a bright ruby color with a blue hue, and a velvety mouthfeel. In general, the wines from 2019 are very aromatic, expressive, open and floral, and there is no sense of heat or alcohol in any of them. They come through as perfectly balanced. It was bottled in April 2021, and 16,670 bottles were produced.

— Luis Gutiérrez (30/07/2021)Robert Parker Wine Advocate Vintage 2019 - 94 PARKER

There were Mediterranean notes of aromatic herbs, aniseed and fennel in the nose of the 2020 Gratallops, the village wine that this year changes to a Burgundy bottle. It's a blend of 87% Garnacha, 12% Cariñena and 1% white grapes, Garnacha Blanca, Macabeo and PX. It has good, contained ripeness and 14.5% alcohol with good freshness and moderate acidity. They used 15% full clusters for the fermentation, which was increased in 2021. 10,522 bottles and some larger formats were filled in April 2022.

— Luis Gutiérrez (30/06/2022)Robert Parker Wine Advocate Vintage 2020 - 94+ PARKER

Customer reviews

4.8/5
4 reviews
Vintage:

Winemaking

It’s made primarily from Garnacha, a good dash of Cariñena (12-19% subject to the year) and 1-2% of white varieties such as Garnacha Blanca, Macabeo and Pedro Ximénez. Harvesting usually begins in September and ends around October 20th.

Once destemmed, the grapes are gently pressed. Alcoholic fermentation, by means of native yeasts, takes place in small wooden vats with periodic stirrings. Malolactic and subsequent barrel ageing (13-16 months) occurs in large French oak casks.

Vinification materialWood
Ageing periodBetween 13 and 16 months
Type of woodFrench oak

Vineyards

Depending upon the vintage year, between 9 and 12 plots, all estate-owned and located in the same municipality, figure in the Gratallops blend. Plots with names like La Capella, La Font Nova, Carrerada, Coll de Falset, Aubagues and Manyetes, when their lands are added up, generate round about 10 hectares of vineyards, and always cultivated in accordance with organic farming methods.

The soils are bestrewn with slate (licorella), with northerly and easterly orientations; the altitude ranges between 300 and 430 metres. The vines are aged from 15 to 70 years old, and planted in different densities, anywhere between 5,200 and 7,700 plants per hectare. Yields vary from 12 to 14 hl/ha.

Vine ageBetween 14 and 70 years
SoilLlicorella
ClimateMediterranean
OrientationNorth / East
Surface area8.00 hectares
Altitude400.00 meters

The winery

Álvaro Palacios

Álvaro Palacios

Álvaro Palacios came to the Priorat in 1989, to the town of Gratallops to be precise, following the lead of a group of local producers fully intending to pass on through their wines all the character of this land, full of its own brightness, with the shining Mediterranean sun, the gleaming slate in rocky crags, and brightly-coloured fennel in the olive groves. This is mystic, spiritual country tracing back its past to the Carthusian monks, who worked at cultivating vines...

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