Mas Martinet, Priorat “Martinet Bru”

After all these years, Priorat still feels like a bit of mystery—the style spectrum remains broad, as producers continue to explore what this place is capable of producing. Tasting today’s impeccably balanced (and very well priced) example from Mas Martinet was exactly the “what’s happening now” kind of reset I was looking for.Forty years ago, it was unlocked by a viticultural renaissance, releasing the magic long-buried in its divinely touched soils. But in the intervening years, “new” iterations of Priorat contained substantial portions of Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah blended with their cherished, native Garnacha (Grenache) and Cariñena (Carignane). Ripe, chewy, opaque red wines, heavily textured and flavored with new French oak barriques and pushing 15% alcohol, were all the rage. But now, as Mas Martinet demonstrates with today’s game-changing ’18, it would seem that more level heads have prevailed. Organic viticulture has intensified in the region, as revived, old-vine Grenache an