Overview of Priorat

Spain has a long, rich history of winemaking and stands today as the third largest producing nation in the world.  You probably have tried some Spanish wine at a restaurant or bought a bottle at a retailer and for good reason – Spanish wines continue to offer some of the best bang for your buck of any region in the world.  The Spanish regions of Rioja and Ribera del Duero (among others) have long been established as quality wine-producing regions.  However, some of the most interesting, complex and powerful Spanish red wines are being made in the up-and-coming wine region of Priorat, which has been largely under-the-radar until the late 1990s.

Priorat (as spelled in Catalan, although other Spaniards call it “Priorato”) is located in the southwest part of the Catalonia region (about 2 hours outside of Barcelona).  Priorat was named for a local monastery that began producing wine in the 12th century, and flourished for many centuries until phylloxera, a small grapevine-destroying insect, arrived in the late 1800’s and destroyed the majority of Priorat vineyards, effectively ruining its wine industry.

Read more

• Tags
• wine tours
• pirorat
• eric
• vino
• Wine recommendations
• spanish wines