2014 Clos Erasmus Priorat

Inky, bright-rimmed ruby. Intensely perfumed cherry liqueur and boysenberry aromas are complicated by suggestions of exotic spices, smoky minerals and floral oils, along with a vanilla flourish that emerges with aeration. Fleshy and alluringly sweet, offering palate-staining red/blue fruit, floral pastille and spicecake flavors that are sharpened and given energetic lift by a spine of juicy acidity. Finishes sweet, mineral and extremely long, with smooth tannins arriving late to add shape and gentle grip. This wine's blend of depth and liveliness is really impressive. (raised for 18 months in new and used French oak barrels and amphoras)

There is a little more Syrah in the blend of the 2014 Clos Erasmus, where it reached around 30% to complement the majority of Garnacha. As is the norm, the wine matured for some 18 months before bottling, with most of the volume in French oak barrels, 40% of which are renewed each vintage, but there are also one or two amphorae. I tasted it next to the 2013 and as the 2013 required so much attention, it took some time to get to the 2014. It showed a bit shy at first, but when I finally came back to it, I found that it had really blossomed with a mixture of violets, ground, smoky meat and black raspberries. The slight increase in Syrah was noticeable, but it somehow also seemed to increase the voice of the slate in the bottle. The palate is medium to full-bodied with terrible balance and elegance combined with inner strength. This is simply terrific. 3,000 bottles were filled at the end of May 2016.