Ritme Celler “Tinto”
Priorat, Spain | 2022
Ritme is the Priorat project of winemaker Albert Jané who comes from a winemaking family in Penedès and later established his own work in neighboring Montsant before crossing into Priorat in 2010. The distinction matters: Priorat is an incredibly difficult place to grow grapes, with steep vineyards, a hot and dry Mediterranean climate, and the region’s famous fractured slate soils called llicorella. Jané built Ritme around those conditions rather than trying to tame them, working organically with vineyards scattered throughout the appellation and focusing heavily on the traditional grapes Garnatxa and Carinyena. His goal is essentially to let Priorat taste like Priorat: powerful, yes, but also mineral, fresh, and distinctly Mediterranean rather than buried under extraction and new oak.
Some of you may recognize this particular bottle from our New Spain tasting we hosted in September, where everyone apparently agreed that it was delicious, and we promptly sold out. So naturally, we bought more, and this time we saved some for Wine Club.
Ritme comes primarily from Garnatxa and Carinyena vines between 20 and 40 years old planted in those unforgiving llicorella soils, with aging split between French oak barrels and much larger oak vats. The name Ritme translates to ‘rhythm’ referring to Albert’s intense focus on the topography, the soil, the climate, and the grape as they come into unison together. It has everything we love about Priorat without becoming a massive, over-extracted fruit bomb: dark berries, Mediterranean herbs, spice, minerality, and plenty of depth, but with freshness keeping everything in check. It’s the biggest wine of this month’s lineup and exactly where we want to end up as the weather starts cooling down. If you weren’t able to try this gem at our tasting, here’s your chance. This muscular wine would go well with any kind of hearty stews, char-grilled steaks, and be sure to throw it in a decanter for a few minutes to get those aromas geared into full-force.