In The Glass: Castell d’Or Esplugen Selecció 2010

With our new Priorat guide off to the printer and available shortly, we need to mention a wine that didn’t make it in to this first edition of the book which is from Castell d’Or. As we found out, while there are nearly 100 officially certified cellars in DOQ Priorat, there are also countless others who are making the wines certified by the regional body, and from Priorat grapes, but rent space in another cellar and thus don’t appear in the list of cellars. Esplugen by Castell d’Or is one of them.

Castell d’Or is a company owned by nine cooperatives located in the Penedès area and the Tarrogona province. They make olive oil as well as all sorts of wines and Cavas in different DOs around Catalonia. Esplugen is the second wine they’ve made in Priorat which they’ve just recently released. While we have it listed and reviewed in the digital version of our guide, we’ll give you a taste right here and now because that’s the way we roll:

Esplugen Selecció 2010 has black pepper, red fruits, and a fleck of fennel to the nose as well as clay and limestone aspects as it opens up. The body presents a good initial balance in the mouth with a pronounced acidity on the back taste. Blackberries carry in to the finish.
65% Grenache, 25% Carignan, 15% Cab Sauvignon
14.5%
~10€