Tasting note
- Colour & appearance
- A pale, delicate cherry red, remarkable for Priorat – luminous, with bright rims. Even in the glass it signals that someone here is writing against the sheer power of the region.
- Nose
- In the background, still an echo of the old school: tar, the darkest fruit, a hint of rubber. Yet above it all, the aromas sing brightly: raspberry rather than blackberry, sour cherry, joined by thyme, green olive and pine grove. Finely sliced beetroot brings an earthy-sweet note, while almond blossom and hibiscus lend a shifting floral elegance. A mature, profound bouquet.
- Palate
- Silky, cool, with a lightness that has few equals in Priorat. The red fruit strings itself along a prominent thread of acidity, accompanied only by the finest tannins in perfect balance. Then the spice pushes forward: kaffir lime leaves, olive wood, beetroot once more, with rosemary and pine in the background. Enormous depth without any heaviness.
- Finish
- Long, cool and fading out with spice – the Mediterranean herbs and the fine acidity carry on well beyond, leaving the mouth clear and fresh.
- Terroir & origin
- The vineyard site lies around 500 metres from Torroja del Priorat at just under 400 metres of elevation – extremely steep, facing entirely north, alive with the interplay of sun, shade and wind. Among the estate’s Premier Crus, it shows the distinctly cooler character. Many of the vines have been rooted in the slate since 1910; the plot covers a mere 1.6 hectares. Dominik Huber, the Munich native who founded the estate with Eben Sadie in 2001, farms his 15 hectares organically and biodynamically – and harvests earlier than almost anyone else in the region.
- Grape variety & vinification
- 100 % Carignan, fermented as whole bunches following the principle of infusion rather than extraction: the grapes are only lightly trodden, with no pigeage. The wine then matures for around eight months in concrete. Wood has not been used for Arbossar since 2016, and the estate has meanwhile also sold its large wooden casks.
- Food recommendations
- The cool freshness and herbal spice make it a versatile everyday wine: pan-fried monkfish with peperonata, confit goose breast with red cabbage and potato dumplings, or portobello mushroom with glazed parsnip and beetroot jus.
- Special features
- The 2021 vintage put the team around Huber and oenologist Tatjana Peceric to a severe test: a hot, dry year, then rain every three to four days right in the middle of the harvest, and rigorous selection in barely accessible steep vineyards. At 13.5 %, the result just reaches the DOCa lower limit – and proves how much radiance a Priorat from a cool north-facing slope can develop when ripeness is not confused with overripeness. A wine that dances where others lumber.
