La Basseta 2021

Mas Alta makes La Basseta in D.O.Q. Priorat from old Garnacha and Cariñena with Cabernet Sauvignon. The vineyards sit on slopes of llicorella, the brown slate that defines Priorat, at 350 to 550 metres. This stony soil is poor and free-draining, so yields are very low and the vines push their roots deep through the rock in search of water, which concentrates the small crop and carries the mineral signature into the glass. Priorat's hot, dry climate ripens the grapes fully while the altitude preserves freshness. The wine ages 16 months in French oak, where slow oxygen exchange rounds the tannins and adds a spice frame without masking the fruit. The colour is dense and dark. The nose is concentrated, with ripe blackberry and plum over a stony, graphite minerality and a lift of oak spice. The palate is full and structured, the Cariñena bringing acidity and the Cabernet a firm tannic line, all set on that slate-driven mineral core. The finish is long and savoury. Serve at 17 to 18 degrees and decant an hour or two ahead. It calls for grilled red meat.