In the Masters of Wine examinations back in 2001, Simon tasted a Priorat blind. It was the 1998 vintage of Clos Mogador from René Barbier. While he was able to identify the wine as a Priorat he says it might possibly have been more by luck than by judgement. At that time Simon had not tasted much in the way of Priorat. All of that said, he was impressed by the richness and poise of the wine.
In the Masters of Wine examinations back in 2001, I tasted a Priorat blind. It was the 1998 vintage of Clos Mogador from René Barbier. I identified the wine as a Priorat but possibly more by luck than by judgement. At that time I had not tasted much in the way of Priorat. All of that said, I was impressed by the richness and poise of the wine.
Having tasted a bit more widely, I have come to the conclusion that the wines of Priorat do vary dramatically. There are a handful of estates that I enjoy, but many that I find lack precision, seem overripe, and too heady to be an attractive wine. Priorat is an exuberant style, unsurprisingly given summers in Catalunya and the role of Garnacha (Grenache) in the blends.
Situated in the north-east, Priorat is named after a priory which was established by the Carthusian monks in the hills high above Tarragona. History suggests that the monks, who headed across from Provence in the twelfth century, brought with them Grenache vines. The vineyards were subsequently ravaged by phylloxera and by the late 1970s the area under vine had shrunk to just 600 hectares. It was at this point that René Barbier, who had been involved in wine in Penedès, recognised the potential of the region. Barbier is rightly considered to be one of the original pioneers; he was essentially the man who put the region on the map. Barbier created his own vineyard, ‘Clos Mogador,’ in the hills of the Gratallops and, after ten years of hard graft, he harvested the fruit from his vines in 1989 for the first time. Hard work is no throwaway phrase; it takes significant effort to establish a vineyard in such terrain as evidenced by the image on the label. Slopes are steep, soils are essentially shale-based and the vines have to sink their roots deep through fissues in rock to seek out the necessary water to see them through the dry summer months. Consequently, yields are low by nature. Given such hot summers, the cooling benefits of altitiude, site selection and winds coming in off the sea do much to assist in moderating the fruit and preventing – in skilled hands – the risks of heady overripeness.
Clos Mogador has become one of the flagship wines for the region impressing with its deep blueberry, blackberry fruit allied to herbal, slate and mineral notes. It is characterised by great power, structure and complexity without compromising on finesse and elegance. The yields from a venerable plot of Garnacha are key to creating this measured sense of concentration. The Garnacha is blended with Carignan, Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon to complete the blend of the Clos. After several years in bottle, the tannins loosen their grip, creating a velvety textural impression with a wealth of fruit coming to the fore. For me, this would be drinking in its prime from 2019.
Last year, Luis Gutierrez wrote the following note on the 2011 vintage.
2011 Clos Mogador
96 points, Luis Gutierrez
The 2011 Clos Mogador feels ripe, serious and young. Rene Barbier likes to pick ripe grapes but without any raisins making it into the vats. The wine is a blend of the different grapes in his Clos Mogador vineyard (it’s just one of a handful of wines officially awarded the single-vineyard label by the Catalan wine institutions): Garnacha, Carinena, Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah. But the wine speaks more of the place than the grapes, with notes of slate, thyme, rosemary, sage, lavender, black cherries and a supple palate, full-bodied, with pungent flavors, round, velvety tannins and a long aftertaste. This is a superb effort for such a warm vintage, the warmest and driest in Priorat since 2003, and great value for the quality. 30,000 bottles are produced of this prodigious, powerful but balanced Priorat. Drink 2015-2025.
Rene Barbier’s Clos Mogador may be an iconic wine for the region and yet it is one of the more favourably priced.