Martina Negre

The wonderful Martina wine was a treasure waiting to be discovered, the perfect wine to do away with stereotypes. It has been claimed that Priorat wines are too strong and too expensive and that Carignan only produces wines with too much alcohol content. The young and easy-going Martina has proven them wrong.

Produced in La Vilella Baixa, in Priorat, with Carignan grapes from 35-year-old vines, it is a pleasant Mediterranean red wine with a good aromatic intensity and a friendly feel. The alcohol content is 14.5 degrees but never feels heavy as Martina moves wonderfully on the palate. Its claret colour with intense violet rims and aromas of ripe blackberries, violets, liquorice, and orange peel are irresistible. With juicy and spongy tannins, it offers an overall sensation of sweetness and pleasure, although it is a dry wine. A discrete acidity never overwhelms but gives the wine the energy it needs to flow elegantly. Its balsamic nose transmits a splendid feeling of freshness, an almost minty aroma. Each sip of the wine takes us on a walk around the steep and narrow streets of La Vilella Baixa. Perhaps on an afternoon during the town festival or visiting the local wine fair on a warm August night. A light breeze, music in the background and garlands of soft lights stretching from tree to tree, as you sit and chat with your friends — every glass of Martina evokes such a feeling. A great Carignan wine, a great Priorat wine.