Mas Martinet Cami Pesseroles 2013
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Robert
Parker
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The wines of Priorat are today Spain’s most mineral, elegant reds. They are equals of the best that the French Mediterranean and Italy produces. It is a wild region, of steep, terraced vineyards that date to Roman times. Its typical terroir is composed mainly of ragged and broken slate (schist, or llicorella in the Catalan dialect), lending distinct character and finesse to the region’s best wines. The winemaking of Sara Perez at Mas Martinet is at once simple and brilliant as described by Drew Matich from Pulling the Cork, August 2009: “. . . the bottom line is this: Sara’s wines faithfully reflect the grapes of the vineyard in any given year. There are no winemaker games played to optimize or equalize the wine across different vintages. The grapes are blended, fermented, and aged as they come out of the vineyard. And from our tastings, the results were amazing.
Blend: 80% Garnacha, 20% Carinyena
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
It was fascinating to come to the warmer and riper Cariñena-rich 2013 Camí Pesseroles after the pure, high altitude freshness of the Garnacha from Els Escurçons. The peachy aromas made this incredibly perfumed and exuberant, without the slightly heavy character it can get in very warm vintages. This wine is worked in smaller barriques and it's quite different from the others, more in the 1990s style. The palate is dry, with abundant dusty tannins and good acidity. It should benefit from a little more time in bottle, but it has all the components to age nicely. It's among the freshest vintages for Pesseroles.
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Founded in the heart of the Priorat by Josep Lluis Perez and his family in 1986, Mas Martinet’s exceptional achievements caused a ripple effect that spurred the momentum resulting in grand advancements for the region. Since 2001, Josep Lluis’ daughter, Sara Perez has been responsible for all wines produced at Mas Martinet. Today, the wines of Priorat are some of Spain's most compelling, and Mas Martinet remains at the vanguard of the region's top producers.
Sara Pérez is widely regarded as among the most talented and innovative young winemakers, and not just in Priorat or Spain. While her wines faithfully reflect the grapes of the vineyard in any given year, Sara’s skill, hard work and impeccable timing is what pushes her wines into the realm of greatness.
With bold fruit flavors and accents of sweet spice, Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre form the base of the classic Rhône Red Blend, while Carignan, Cinsault and Counoise often come in to play. Though they originated from France’s southern Rhône Valley, with some creative interpretation, Rhône blends have also become popular in other countries. Somm Secret—Putting their own local spin on the Rhône Red Blend, those from Priorat often include Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. In California, it is not uncommon to see Petite Sirah make an appearance.
Tiny and entirely composed of craggy, jagged and deeply terraced vineyards, Priorat is a Catalan wine-producing region that was virtually abandoned until the early 1990s. This Spanish wine's renaissance came with the arrival of one man, René Barbier, who recognized the region’s forgotten potential. He banded with five friends to create five “Clos” in the village of Gratallops. Their aim was to revive some of Priorat’s ancient Carignan vines, as well as plant new—mainly French—varieties. These winemakers were technically skilled, well-trained and locally inspired; not surprisingly their results were a far cry from the few rustic and overly fermented wines already produced.
This movement escalated Priorat’s popularity for a few reasons. Its new wines were modern and made with well-recognized varieties, namely old Carignan and Grenache blended with Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. When the demand arrived, scarcity commanded higher prices and as the region discovered its new acclaim, investors came running from near and far. Within ten years, the area under vine practically doubled.
Priorat’s steep slopes of licorella (brown and black slate) and quartzite soils, protection from the cold winds of the Siera de Monstant and a lack of water, leading to incredibly low vine yields, all work together to make the region’s wines unique. While similar blends could and are produced elsewhere, the mineral essence and unprecedented concentration of a Priorat wine is unmistakable.