This is a single vineyard with an average vine age of 20 years. One of the first 5 great "clos" that catapulted the Priorat to fame.
The 2023 Finca Dofí was still not bottled, like a few of the 2023s. It comes from the 12.5-hectare vineyard that names the wine, which extends across three different parajes, or lieu-dits, from Gratallops. The vines were planted 20 years ago on slopes and terraces, and in 2023, it delivered 95% Garnacha and 5% Cariñena that fermented with part of uncrushed grapes in oak vats with indigenous yeasts and had a 36-day maceration. It matured in oval oak foudres and large barrels for 15 months. When I tasted it last year, it surprised me because of it's floral and perfumed profile. It continues the same, a character that has grown in the last few years, floral, aromatic and elegant, very clean and precise. - 96pts Wine Advocate
Aromas of moss, ripe red cherries and touches of fine herbs and pink peppercorns. Medium-bodied with fine-grained tannins in a sandy texture. Slightly chewy. Juicy, nicely fluid and bright in the long, structured finish. Drink from 2026. - 94pts James Suckling
Winemaker Notes
Pristine fresh fruit, ripe blackberries with Priorat 'garrigue' - fragrant wild herbs, rosemary, thyme, black tea. Silky, fine tannin and bright acidity.
Professional Ratings
97
Jeb Dunnuck
96
Wine AdvocateThe 2023 Finca Dofí was still not bottled, like a few of the 2023s. It comes from the 12.5-hectare vineyard that names the wine, which extends across three different parajes, or lieu-dits, from Gratallops. The vines were planted 20 years ago on slopes and terraces, and in 2023, it delivered 95% Garnacha and 5% Cariñena that fermented with part of uncrushed grapes in oak vats with indigenous yeasts and had a 36-day maceration. It matured in oval oak foudres and large barrels for 15 months. When I tasted it last year, it surprised me because of it's floral and perfumed profile. It continues the same, a character that has grown in the last few years, floral, aromatic and elegant, very clean and precise.
94
James SucklingAromas of moss, ripe red cherries and touches of fine herbs and pink peppercorns. Medium-bodied with fine-grained tannins in a sandy texture. Slightly chewy. Juicy, nicely fluid and bright in the long, structured finish. Drink from 2026.
93
Vinous
91
Wine Spectator
About the Producer
If anyone embodies the promise and spirit of “The New Spain,” it is Álvaro Palacios. His L’Ermita is widely considered—along with Peter Sisseck’s Pingus—to be the most important new Spanish wine of the modern era. One of nine children born to the owners of Rioja’s respected Palacios Remondo, Álvaro studied enology in Bordeaux, while working under Jean-Pierre Moueix at Ch. Pétrus. He credits his tenure at Pétrus for much of his winemaking philosophy and for showing him “the importance of great wines.” Álvaro could have returned to the security of his family’s domaine.
