Mas Martinet Cami Pesseroles 2018
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Parker
Robert
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Winemaker Notes
Camí Pesseroles is a reflection of its location, the old horseshoe path from Gratallops to Porrera, where you sink on the board to your knees. It also reflects that older Carignan, over 80 years old, and a younger Grenache, aged 30.
A wine that we ferment in open chestnut barrels and that we also breed in chestnut wood and damajoanes.
Pure minerality and rusticity, a tribute to the Priorat of the 50s, in the midst of the postwar period and industrial revolution.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The red 2018 Camí Pesseroles was named after the vineyard where the Garnacha and Cariñena grapes come from, a plot co-planted in 1939. The whole clusters were foot trodden and then fermented in two open-top 500-liter chestnut wood barrels and an oak vat with indigenous yeasts for almost three weeks. The wine was pressed and matured in 650-liter chestnut and acacia, cherry and oak wood barrels. The wine is only 13.5% alcohol and in this cool vintage has retained very good freshness. It has the elegant and fresh style of all these reds; the wines are precise, aromatic and open. This is surprisingly elegant for Cariñena, a grape that almost always has a rustic touch. 2,132 bottles and some larger formats were filled in June 2020.
Rating: 95(+)
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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.