CLOS DEL PORTAL
Passage to Priorat
Less than two hours out of Barcelona, but a thousand miles away. It’s a wild place: Alpine meadows, windy natural amphitheatres, deep river valleys surrounded by astonishingly steep cliffs.
Vineyards are planted on terraces up craggy escarpments, and on “costers” (steep hillside plots). Soils are mineral rich, predominantly “Llicorella” slate. Vintaging is difficult, and yields are pitifully small, but the wines …
We’re here at Clos del Portal. Owner / winemaker Alfredo Arribas opens a bottle, say, the 2011 Tros de Clos, and you know where you are. Close your eyes. Breathe. The Mediterranean garrigue is all around you … rosemary, lavender to be sure … is that violets? Taste. Layers of flavor. And the unmistakable underpinnings of Priorat minerality.
Three wines, all from the Clos del Portal estate. All sharing the elegance, subtlety and purity typical of this winery.
Vineyards are planted on terraces up craggy escarpments, and on “costers” (steep hillside plots). Soils are mineral rich, predominantly “Llicorella” slate. Vintaging is difficult, and yields are pitifully small, but the wines …
We’re here at Clos del Portal. Owner / winemaker Alfredo Arribas opens a bottle, say, the 2011 Tros de Clos, and you know where you are. Close your eyes. Breathe. The Mediterranean garrigue is all around you … rosemary, lavender to be sure … is that violets? Taste. Layers of flavor. And the unmistakable underpinnings of Priorat minerality.
Three wines, all from the Clos del Portal estate. All sharing the elegance, subtlety and purity typical of this winery.
2011 Clos del Portal Negre de Negres
2011 Clos del Portal Negre de Negres
“Red of Reds” … A captivating blend of Grenache, Carignan and Syrah. Ripe dark fruits, balanced and rounded, with a freshness that makes for easy and pleasurable drinking.
$30.00 per Bottle
$360.00 per Case
2011 Clos del Portal Somni
2011 Clos del Portal Somni
A wine of great depth and intensity. The yin and yang of Carignan and Syrah: powerful, masculine, yet layered with floral notes. Dark sweet fruits, pepper. Silky tannins. Balanced acidity. One for the cellar, if you can resist.
$58.00 per Bottle
$696.00 per Case
2011 Clos del Portal
Tros de Clos
Tros de Clos
2011 Clos del Portal Tros de Clos
The Grand Cru of the estate. One-hundred percent Carignan, sourced from a century-old vineyard. Remarkable elegance and finesse, nuance. Floral notes. Fresh, mineral. Only 1,856 bottles produced.
$78.00 per Bottle