B-21 Top Recommendation
Read More
"The 2020 Cirerets, 60% Garnacha and 40% Cariñena, shows clean aromas and flavors, definition and elegance within the powerful, ripe and concentrated style from Priorat and the winery." - Luis Gutiérrez, Wine Advocate
Balancing the fresh, pure flavors of Garnacha with the elegance and complexity of old-vine Cariñena, the 2020 Bodegas Mas Alta Cirerets is a bargain-priced beauty, boasting luscious fruit, wild herbs, and flinty minerality while delivering serious bang for the buck for lovers of robust, terroir-driven Spanish reds.
Although often overshadowed by more famous regions like Ribera del Duero and Rioja, the rugged, remote Priorat DOC southwest of Barcelona has gained an elite reputation among collectors over the last several decades, its unforgiving, steep vineyards planted on the dark, decomposed slate known as llicorella mixed with shale and red clay, which produces highly rated red blends, often with stratospheric prices to match their critical acclaim. Established in 1999 as a joint project under the direction of renowned Rhône négociant and winemaker Michel Tardieu and the late, iconic French enologist Philippe Cambie, Bodega Mas Alta crafted the outstanding value-driven Cirerets in the village of Vilella Alta, its organically farmed vineyards located at high altitudes from 100 to 600 meters in the shadow of the Serra del Montsant mountains. A blend of Garnacha (Grenache) from 20-year-old vines and Cariñena (Carignan) from low-yielding, 60-year-old vines, the outstanding 2018 Cirerets was fermented in concrete tanks with local yeasts, then aged separately for 16 months before blending – the Garnacha in used barrels and the Cariñena in new ones – yielding elegant, velvety tannins finishing with mineral-tinged acidity rooted in the region's unique volcanic soils.
Drawing praise from Robert Parker over a decade ago for producing top values in the region, Mas Alta's bright and youthful 2020 Cirerets continues the trend with 94+ points from Wine Advocate's Luis Gutiérrez and can't-miss, sub-$40 price for a stunning collectible value. | 
Top Quality Store
