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Wine Description
The Story
Description: This Wine is a homage to the monks of the courageous carthusian order, who arrived in 'Priorat', in 1095, where they cultivated vines. In 1835 a violent crowd destroyed the work of a lifetime and sacked the monastery, events which later culminated in the auctioning of church lands known as the "Desamortización de Mendizábal". In 1996 the Torres Family began work on the planting of vineyards on the slopes strewn with the hard, black slate-like "Licorella" stone.
Origin: Made by the Torres family and coming exclusively from our vineyards located in the municipalities of Porrera and Lloar, Salmos is a Priorat wine that manages to achieve an unparalleled balance between power and elegance.
Serving suggestions: Game and red meat dishes. Serve at 16-18ºC.
Tasting Notes: Dark in hue and almost opaque, it is fragrant and mineral on the nose while on the palate it is luxurious and oily, but also silky and with a long finish. This darkly coloured wine is reminiscent of jam and liquorish, over a smooth spicy and toasted background, which comes from The French oak barrels.
Salmos is born in a beautiful remote land. The vineyards, planted on slopes of shale (“licorella” stone), undergo extreme changes in temperature between day and night and these natural vicissitudes add to the wine’s appeal. Salmos is a tribute to the Carthusian monks who planted the first grapevines in the Priorat. The wine holds the mysterious legacy of ancient times and wise men.
Appellation: DO Qualificada Priorat
Grape varieties: Cariñena, Garnacha and Syrah
Soil: Shallow soils developed over Carboniferous (Paleozoic) slates that drain swiftly and have a low water holding capacity. It is precisely these soils, located on steep slopes, that give Priorat wines their typicity.
Precipitation: Annual average (historical): 509 mm
Temperature: Annual average (historical): 14.9ºC
Winemaking: Number of days of skin contact: 12-14 days / Type of fermentation: In stainless steel tanks under temperature control and malolactic fermentation in French oak barrels / Number of days of fermentation: 8-9 days / Fermentation temperature: 24-25ºC
Ageing: During 14 months in French oak (20% new)
Tasting notes: Brilliant ruby red color with garnet highlights. Astounding floral (confected rose) and fruit (black cherry) aroma with aromatic herbs (thyme) coming through. Lively and light-bodied on the palate, full of personality, well structured with pleasant tannins and a streak of acidity that promises a good future.
Serving suggestions: A great match for wild game and red meat. Pairs beautifully with Lamb and roasts. Serve at 16–18°C
Awards: 90 points, Wine Advocate (Luís Gutierrez) 2019 (USA)
Vintage 2012
SPAIN 2012 VINTAGE REPORT
The Control Board has given the 2012 Rioja vintage the official rating of ‘VERY GOOD’. The global rating reflects the heterogeneous nature of the vintage. The drought affected both grape volume and grape quality in some vineyards but also resulted in a significant quantity of wine of extremely high quality, in line with the wines of the two previous vintages, both rated ‘excellent’.
In general, Rioja’s vineyards showed good canopy growth and health throughout the growing season. Phenological development was normal in terms of dates compared to the average of the last few years. Although fertility rates were lower than those of the last two seasons, they were still within normal values for the grape varieties of the D.O.Ca. Rioja. The continuing drought that has affected the Region in the past two years curtailed the production of part of those vineyards located in drylands. In late August grape ripening was normal, with average values for hat time of the year.
After a growing cycle beset by drought, the late September rains had a significant impact, with a very positive effect on ripening, improving final berry balance and raising hopes about final production figures for a large part of Rioja vineyards. Most of the harvested grapes were in excellent health with a great balance between alcohol content and polyphenols, leading to wines of superb quality, with good polyphenolic structure , particularly suited for ageing in barrels and laying down for a long time.
Another reason behind the positive outcome of the 2012 vintage was the professionalism of growers and wineries in scheduling the harvest, given the uneven ripening found among different plots, which required selective harvesting to ensure the best quality was obtained from each vineyard. The total production volume of the 2012 harvest in Rioja came to 354.9 million kg of grapes —one of the lowest yields per hectare of the last two decades (5,710 kg/ha) and a significant drop compared to the 387 million kg harvested the previous year.
