I was absolutely floored when I tasted this wine last week. 100% Grenache from certified organic and very old vineyards in Terra Alta, just west of Priorat, this will go down as one of our top finds of 2023! I can't wait for you to get it into your glass, and I rate this one 95 points with full conviction and confidence.
"This honestly competes with Chateauneuf, Priorat, and Gigondas at a fraction of the price! Buy as much as you can!!" -- this is what I said to myself after tasting this one last week.
Whether you like Southern Rhones, fuller Pinot Noirs, or if you already have a fondness for Spanish Garnacha, this is going to seriously ring your bell. From a wonderful, small, hard-working family estate, the 2021 Herencia Altes Garnatxa Negra is a sensational bottle of wine at a ridiculously low price.
2021 Herencia Altes Garnatxa Negra
One of the finest Spanish red wine values I've ever encountered. - Yours Truly - 95 points
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Famous wine critic Robert Parker said this wine possesses "an intensity and richness normally found in $50+ wines." He's right about that, and the talented Nuria Altes, the force behind and lead winemaker at Herencia Altes, might need to raise her prices a bit. There's just so much QPR here, but don't worry, I'm not going to recommend she raise her prices :)
For many years, the Altes family simply grew grapes and sold them to larger producers. While Nuria Altes grew up in these vineyards and is very fond of her elders, she chose a different path in 2010 when she and her partner Rafael decided to start making their own wines. Today, they farm 60 hectares of vines without the use of chemicals or fertilizers, they harvest by hand, and they ferment with native yeasts in concrete tanks.
The sandy and clay-limestone soils of Terra Alta yield an elegant, silky, and joyful version of Garnatxa. Deep ruby-crimson in color, this charges out of the glass with pure notes of kirsch, strawberry, raspberry, white pepper, flowers, and hot rock. Generous, round, and supple on the palate, the tannins are nicely developed and fine-grained, and the wine glides across the palate with a polish rarely encountered in reds at this price point.
An early candidate for top red wine value of the year, I highly recommend you buy at least 6+ bottles. Even though we're getting enough to fill a small swimming pool, it will go fast.
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Josh Spurling
Owner, Operator, Wine Monger
Table Wine Asheville