The 2005 Santbru is 65% Carinena, 15% Garnacha, and 20% Syrah sourced from 50-80 years old vines. The wine was aged for 12 months in French oak, 80% new. Opaque purple-colored, it reveals a brooding bouquet of mineral, pencil lead, blueberry, and blackberry. On the palate it is full-bodied with plenty of power marked by outstanding depth and concentration. The fruit is sweet and supple-textured, nicely covering enough tannin to carry this wine for another 3-5 years. It will be at its best from 2012-2025. Portal del Montsant is a new estate started by Barcelona architect Alfredo Arribas in 2001 with his purchase of the Mas de Portal property. He hired the experienced Ricard Rofes as winemaker. The estate is being farmed organically.Importer: Tom George, Frontier Wine Imports, Dover, NJ; tel. (973) 328-4500

This red's assertive tannins support cranberry and boysenberry fruit flavors, with notes of game and mineral. Firm, but not heavy-handed. Drink now through 2012. 1,000 cases made, 140 cases imported.??–TM??Region: Spain / Montsant Select to Add