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Robert Parker - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
"A magnificent custom cuvee for Eric Solomon, this 2010 was made from high-elevation vineyards in the Costa Brava planted in granite. It was fashioned by the brilliant Jean-Marc Lafage, whose wines are reviewed elsewhere in this article. Composed of 100% Grenache aged 3 months in new French oak, it reveals copious aromas of raspberry jam, black currants, kirsch, flowers and forest floor, full body, terrific fruit, lots of complexity already, and a multidimensional mouthfeel. Drink this stunning red over the next 4-5 years."
Product Description:
"100% Garnacha. Sustainable with organic and biodynamic practices and it's undergoing EcoCert certification for 2013. The soils are slate and granite and the vines were planted in 1920. After fermentation, this wine spends 3 months in new French oak. The wine is medium bodied, with ripe berry and spice notes, finishing with slightly chalky tannins." -Importer
WINERY:
"Although the Espelt family has been growing grapes for quite some time, it was not until 2000 that they began to produce their own wine. With over 500 acres of vineyards planted to a multitude of varieties, Espelt's ultra modern winery is responsible for some of the greatest values in the region with a whimsical sensibility."
"The property is located in the Northeast of Spain close to the Mediterranean sea and the Pyrenees mountains, an area with low rainfall and healthy cool winds from the north. It has very old vineyards planted on two National Parks on slate and granite soils. The road to the famed restaurant, El Bulli runs through the Espelt vineyard." -Importer
EMPORDA D.O.:
"This D.O. [is located] in the extreme northeast corner of Spanish Cataluna separated from Roussillon only by the French border. The zone has a long history of wine production, which was nearly extinct when phylloxera swept through the vineyards in the 1900s...Garnatxa, the Catalan name for the Grenache grape...and Carignan still account for 80 percent of production." -Jancis Robinson, Oxford Companion to Wine
