Alvaro Palacios Red Blend Priorat l'Ermita 2005

The 2005 Les Terrasses is sourced from a biodynamically farmed vineyard. This purple-hued wine offers an already complex bouquet of mineral, pencil lead, scorched earth, leather, and black cherry. This is followed by a full-flavored wine with layers of ripe fruit, silky tannins, and a smooth palate-feel. Although it can be enjoyed now, it has enough stuffing to evolve for several years and drink well through 2017. It is also a great value in Priorat, a rarity these days.

90WS no further case discount

Luxurious Drinks offers you: Wine - red - 2005 - Alvaro Palacios les Terrasses - Spain - Region: Priorat - Apellation: Priorat - Cariñena Blend - 750 ml.

Dark red. Precise cherry and black currant aromas are complicated by cocoa, anise and dried flowers. Supple, chewy dark fruit flavors are gently supported by dusty tannins, with good acid lift on the back. Finishes with excellent juicy persistence and a jolt of bitter cherry.

This is Priorat pioneer Alvaro Palacio's négociant wine. It's named for the stony, slate-soiled, terraced vineyards in the heart of the tiny Priorat appellation, from which Palacios purchases grapes; the wines range in age from 10 to 100 years old. The wine is a blend of Grenache (50 percent), Carignane (40 percent) and Cabernet Sauvignon (10 percent).

Precise cherry and blackcurrant aromas are complicated by cocoa, anise and dried flowers. Supple, chewy dark fruit flavors are gently supported by dusty tannins, with good acid lift on the back. Finishes with excellent juicy persistence.

90 Points Wine Spectator: As for a collectible wine in Priorat that sells for under $50 my vote goes to Alvaro Palacios Les Terrasses... This plush red spills over with sweet cherry and berry flavors accented by licorice mountain herb and coffee. The tannins are firm but the texture is fresh and lively. Drink now through 2014. 3000 cases imported. Thomas Matthews.If anyone embodies the promise and spirit of The New Spain it is 43-year-old Alvaro Palacios. His LaErmita is widely considered along with Peter Sissecks Dominio de Pingus to be the most important Spanish wine in a generation. One of nine children born to the owners of Riojas respected Palacios Remondo Alvaro studied enology in Bordeaux while working under Jean-Pierre Moueix at Ch. Petrus. He credits his tenure at Petrus for much of his winemaking philosophy and for showing him the importance of great wines.