2020 Alvaro Palacios L'Ermita Priorat

The regional blend 2020 Camins del Priorat, produced with grapes from 101 plots from eight villages in Priorat, is a blend of 55% Garnacha, 15% Syrah, 12% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Merlot and 8% Cariñena, higher in Garnacha and lower in Cariñena, like in the majority of 2019s. That gives the wines freshness and elegance, vivacity and fluidity. It fermented with the indigenous yeasts in a combination of stainless steel, oak and concrete vats and matured in barrel and oak vats for four months. This is more Priorat than any of the vintages of Camins; in reality, nobody is planting French varieties anymore and many are regrafting their vines, so in the future, the tendency could be toward more Garnacha and Cariñena in this wine. This is a very drinkable version of Camins, less dense than the 2019, from a year that was cooler with just an herbal hint. The mouthfeel is velvety with great freshness and very fine tannins. This has to be the finest Camins to date, different from previous years; it should be a commercial success. 226,000 bottles were produced. 2020 was their earliest harvest ever. Robert Parker's Wine Advocate