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Priorat

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Priorat's llicorella slate and terraces, Garnacha and Cariñena, Montsant next door and a Ribera del Duero comparison.

All levels93 min12 stepsAbout Priorat DOQ

Part of Spain

Start

  1. Priorat DOQ

    Region9 minWatch

    Start with Priorat, one of Spain's two DOCa regions (DOQ in Catalan), revived from 1989 by five pioneers in Gratallops.

  2. Vi de Finca (Catalonia's Qualified Estate Wine Distinction)

    Wine term8 min

    Next, Vi de Finca, Catalonia's single-vineyard classification from 2002, a philosophy pioneered in Priorat.

  3. Llicorella Terroir

    Terroir7 min

    Then llicorella, the fissured slate with bedrock about 10 to 15 centimetres below the surface, that forces vine roots to work between its laminar sheets for moisture.

  4. Schist Soils (Douro, Priorat, Swartland, Mosel)

    Terroir8 min

    Place llicorella in the wider family of schist soils, shared with the Douro, Swartland and Mosel.

  5. Terraced Vineyards: History and Function (Douro, Priorat, Mosel, Cinque Terre)

    Terroir8 min

    See how the narrow terraces called costers hold Priorat's llicorella slopes, alongside terraces in the Douro, Mosel and Cinque Terre.

  6. Grenache / Garnacha

    Grape6 minWatch

    Now the grapes: Garnacha, whose intense, minerally top wines from the schists of Priorat Jancis Robinson credits with dramatically reviving its reputation in Spain.

  7. Carignan

    Grape6 min

    Carignan, called Samsó in Priorat and Mazuelo in Rioja, likely named after the town of Cariñena in Aragón.

  8. Garnacha Blanca

    Grape5 min

    Among the permitted whites, Garnacha Blanca, a white mutation of Garnacha to which llicorella lends a saline, mineral intensity.

  9. Montsant DO

    Region9 min

    Step next door to Montsant, which almost completely surrounds Priorat and grows Grenache and Carignan.

  10. Catalonia: Appellations, Sub-regions and Grapes

    Region10 min

    Zoom out to Catalonia, where INCAVI lists twelve denominations of origin and Priorat is the only qualified one.

  11. Ribera del Duero DO

    Region10 minWatch

    Leave Catalonia for Ribera del Duero on the plateau of Castile and León, a Tempranillo region, to set up a comparison.

  12. Priorat vs Ribera del Duero

    Comparison7 min

    Priorat DOQ vs Ribera del Duero DO

    Compare Priorat with Ribera del Duero on climate, soil, grapes, classification and scale.

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