PRIORAT’S “PERFECT” WINE

CLOS ERASMUS 2006
Daphne Glorian, owner/winemaker of Clos Erasmus, is one of the pioneers of the PRIORAT appellation. Clos Erasmus was begun with the purchase of some old vines of Garnacha by Daphne Glorian, who happened to be in the area visiting some friends. What started as a “fun” project in 1990 soon became a very serious endeavor as the Priorat rapidly ascended to world-class wine status. Clos Erasmus is now considered a benchmark of the region and has recently received consecutive 100 Point scores from the Wine Advocate (2004 & 2005), the only wine of Spain to ever achieve such critical accolades.
We were delighted to catch up with Daphne recently at a tasting in Boston, and even more delighted to be able to offer her new 2006 releases.

2006 Clos Erasmus $200 ($170 case purchase)
75% Garnacha, 15% Syrah, and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon.
“Think of your wildest fantasy coming true and you may be able to conjure up the pleasure [Clos Erasmus] delivers now and will continue to deliver over the next 12-15 years.” – Wine Advocate on 2005 Clos Erasmus, 100 pts.

2006 Clos Erasmus ‘Laurel’ $50 ($42.50 case purchase)
The “Laurel” cuvee is the result of extreme triage in the vineyards and cellar. It is produced 100% from the Clos Erasmus vineyards but from the more recent plantings and is the result of declassification of some of the barrels of Clos Erasmus. The wine is aged for 16 months in one-year oak and bottled without fining or filtration. The blend is 65% Garnacha and 35% Cabernet Sauvignon with tiny yields of 14 hl/ha (about 1 ton an acre).

“Purple-colored it offers up a classic bouquet of smoke, cedar, mineral, black cherry, and black currant. Smooth-textured, rich, and deceptively easy-going, this full-flavored lengthy effort will evolve for 4-6 years but who will want to wait that long?“-Wine Advocate on 2005 Laurel

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