Negre de Negres 2021

The Negre de Negres 2021 is the estate wine of Portal del Priorat, bringing together the plots of the Clos del Portal estate. In the glass, a bright, slightly translucent ruby red, with a smoky, earthy and dark-berried nose, joined by a lovely spice and mineral note. This wine is more interested in precision than power.

The vines grow at 450 to 500 metres altitude, rooted in the black Llicorella slate blended with other soil components. Clos del Portal lies in the southern Priorat near the villages of El Lloar and Bellmunt: forty hectares, of which only fourteen carry vines, the rest given over to olives, almonds and Mediterranean woodland. Alfredo Arribas farms organically and biodynamically, limiting yields to around one kilogram of grapes per vine.

Grenache dominates the blend ahead of Carignan, joined by Cabernet Sauvignon. The vines range from 20 to 65 years old, the younger ones grown from a massale selection of the older vines. Harvest took place between the second week of September and the second week of October. After destemming, the lots fermented spontaneously in wood and stainless steel and matured for 15 months in foudres and French barrels. No new barriques are used.

Ripe and juicy, without ever tipping into over-concentration. Liquorice and a touch of pepper lead, alongside dark fruit, meaty notes and a hint of meat extract. The tannin is pleasantly rustic and keeps the wine lively.

Alfredo Arribas trained as an architect and designed bars and hotels in Barcelona before buying land in the southern Priorat in 2001 and bottling his first wines in 2004. On the abandoned terraces he found old, ungrafted vines that phylloxera had spared in the harsh, steep slate. Winemaker Juan Asens works with wild yeasts, short macerations and minimal use of sulphur.