Negre is made from 75% Grenache and 25% Carignan—roughly the same blend as used a generation ago. A healthy dose of the Grenache was grown high in the Montsant ranges on clay-limestone soils, and the remainder of the fruit came from vines grown on the slate and schist of Priorat, providing savoury minerality. Fermented whole-cluster and with indigenous yeasts, the Negre was then aged for six months in a 5000-litre concrete tank.
The style is juicy, lifted and enticing, floral, red-fruited, smoky and spicy. It’s a lovely, old-school Priorat that’s packed with pure fruit and mineral notes, and no hint of oak treatment. Expect waves of gorgeous red cherry and lavender fruit interwoven with earthy, smoky mineral notes and a long juicy finish with just a pinch of very fine tannins. Wildly drinkable and terrific value, it hints of a Priorat that might have been and might still be!