2012 Espectacle Montsant

Espectacle is in the Montsant appellation of Tarragona, in northeastern Spain. It is the collective project of a group of well-connected and experienced Spanish and English wine producers and marketers, including Rene Barbier, founder of Clos Mogador. The estate so far makes just one wine which is produced from a single vineyard of 100-year-old Garancha vines. Robert M. Parker Jr. rated the 2004 debut vintage at 99 pts and calls the wine “arguably the greatest wine produced in the Montsant D.O.”

Cataluña is the northeastern corner of Spain just under France. Its most famous city is Barcelona, which suggests a lot about the open-minded, entrepreneurial attitude toward winemaking in this region. Cataluña, or Catalunya as it is known in the local Catalan language, doesn’t think of itself as particularly Spanish, and its winemaking traditions are a mix Spanish and French. Of the ten appellations in Cataluña the most famous are Priorat, Penedès and Tarragona. Penedès is the largest and most productive of the appellations since it is home to Spain’s most important Cava producers, namely Freixenet and Codorníu. Cava was first made in Penedès in the late 19th century using Spanish grape varietals to making sparkling wines in the French manner. Cataluña is also known for intensely flavored, dark red wines from Priorat and other appellations. The primary red grapes are Tempranillo, Garnacha Tinta and Cabernet Sauvignon. Cava is made from the indigenous white grapes Xarel-lo, Parellada and Macabeo.