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wine of the month

Fra Fulco - Red Priorate Wine

One of the most magical settings in Spain, the Priorat lies in the rugged hills of Northeastern Spain in Spanish Catalonia, not far from Barcelona.

The terroir of the Priorat should be looked at in a Burgundian context, with each of the historical villages having slightly different soils producing different styles of wines. However, the one common theme that draws them all together is the presence of schiste (licorella in Catalan) which helps form these craggy hillsides. The vines are planted on slopes and are often steeply terraced, making for difficult work and extremely low yields. The climate is Mediterranean and the summers are quite warm.

While the Priorat is known for both Garnacha (Grenache) and Carinena (Carignan), it is Garnacha which typically get most of the glory. It is widely planted and grows well on the schisty soils of the region. However, in the village of La Vilella Alta, Carinena grows extremely well and is the dominant varietal. These vines cling to the rockcovered hillsides and even though there is a tremendous amount of sunlight during the year, the wines of Fra Fulco (while powerful) retain a sense of elegance that helps to make them one of the top Carignan-based wines of the world.

The 2001 Fra Fulco has full, funky aromas of dense, dark currant and blueberry fruits with notes of Minerals and bacon.  On the Palate the wine is a big brute, and the full force of its considerable heft spreads out over the palate.  There is a wonderfully rustic, powerful style to this wine that must hark back to how great wines tasted hundreds of years ago.  75% Carinena, 15% Garnacha, 10% syrah

By the bottle $104.00

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