Cal Batllet-Marc Ripoll, Gratallops Llum d'Alena, DOQ Priorat, Spain, 2018

Producer Profile

Marc Ripoll returned to his family vineyards to change their fortunes.

The family had been reduced to selling their harvests to the local co-operative, but he set about renovating the dilapidated winery and now Cal Batllet is regarded as one of the leading estates from their village of Gratallops. Marc is part of the new generation of winemakers in Priorat who are reclaiming the region for their own. Focusing on a style that puts the local terroir as its heart and looking to create wines of elegance and refinement, light years away from what made Priorat the darling of the American critics. An organic approach in the vineyard and use of wild yeast and barrel fermentation all come together to create wines expressive of the individual sites they come from. The 90 year old bush vines planted in steep hillsides on slate soil all create personalities of their own, none more so than the nearly extinct Escanyavella grape, which translates from Catalan as ‘old lady strangler’!

Viticulture

From the younger of the vineyards, around 25 years old, planted on the organically certified vineyards among the terraces in Gratallops.

Winemaking

Fermentation is controlled to ensure it never exceeds 26ºC, with manual overpumpings and a 30-day maceration period. Wild yeasts fermentation the wine is soft extracted with utmost respect. Aged in flextank eggs.

Oak Ageing

No oak ageing

Tasting Note

Llum d’Alena is a wine full of flowery notes, fruits and herbs. Sweet on the entrance, it is intense, rounded, pleasing and easy to drink. A wine with plenty of fruit, structure and freshness, in perfect balance for easy drinking.

Food Matching

Paella, rice and red meat dishes.