2021 Terroir Sense Fronteres Brisat, Montsant

Brisat is a blend of 75% Garnacha Blanca and 25% Macabeu from 15- to 35-year-old vines around Capçanes, grown at between 300 and 350 metres on sandy clay soils locally known as panal. The fruit is harvested earlier than typical for the area—when flavour is ripe but still with good acidity. Montsant permits harvesting at 11.5% for whites, which gives TSF the flexibility to pick earlier than permitted in Priorat (this 2021 finished at 11.5% ABV).
 
Brisat in Catalan refers to wine fermented on skins and so here, half the grapes were direct-pressed, and the other half were skin-macerated for five to seven days. If you tasted earlier releases of Brisat, we should note that today Huber and Peceric are searching for more finesse and expression of place in this wine and so have toned back the skinsyness. Fermentation took place with wild yeasts before the wine rested on lees for six months in tank. Bottled unfiltered.
 
The 2021 opens with a gorgeous range of white florals and orchard fruits with touches of green mango, all underpinned by stony savouriness. The palate is super-bright, with cascading saline and mineral flavours wrapping around a core of juicy citrus, leading to a pure, long and gently grippy finish. Lovers of savoury, mineral-rich whites, please form an orderly queue.