2022 Clos Mogador COM TU Monsant, Priorat

A stemmy nose with wild berries, dried Mediterranean herbs and nice touches of sauerkraut and ripe, sweet red berries. This is firm and textured on the palate, with round, minerally fruit gliding through to a lengthy finish. Drink now or hold.

94 points James Suckling

Clos Mogador is inseparable from the modern story of Priorat. René Barbier arrived in the region in the late 1970s and became one of the small group of growers responsible for its extraordinary revival. COM TU takes the Barbier story across the boundary into neighbouring Montsant, a project created by René and Isabelle Barbier with their son René Barbier Meyer and centred on Garnatxa. The name translates loosely as “like you”, fitting for a wine intended to show a more intimate, unvarnished side of the family’s winemaking.

The fruit comes from around La Figuera, one of Montsant’s great places for Garnatxa, where old vines grow at considerable elevation. Cooler nights and limestone rich soils help counter the Mediterranean sunshine, giving the variety fragrance and freshness alongside its natural generosity. The 2022 vintage was warm and dry, yet the altitude allows COM TU to carry its ripe fruit with surprising energy rather than slipping into heaviness.

Bright ruby crimson, bursting with raspberry, Morello cherry and ripe strawberry before violet, blood orange and lavender appear. Fennel seed, liquorice, thyme and cracked pepper add a distinctly savoury edge. The palate is generous but beautifully fluid, with juicy red fruit, fresh acidity and fine, supple tannins. Cherry and raspberry return with anise, orange peel and warm stone through a long, fragrant finish.

Charred octopus with paprika and chickpeas would be terrific, alongside lamb kofta with yoghurt and mint, smoky eggplant with romesco, grilled tuna with peppers or chicken cooked over charcoal with garlic and rosemary. Our pick is the octopus, with plenty of lemon and smoky paprika to meet the Garnatxa’s sweet fruit and savoury spice.

Cellaring: Drink now to 2037.