Alvaro Palacios
Around Priorat, Alvaro Palacios stands for a winery that consistently connects origin and craft.
Slate is the metronome of Priorat. Under Álvaro Palacios, llicorella—crumbled schist shot with quartz—sets the pace: fast drainage, fierce heat reflection, and vines forced to root deep for every drop. When Palacios arrived in Gratallops in 1989, he chose these vertiginous terraces and their old Garnacha and Cariñena instead of easy volume. Work here is measured in hand steps, not tractor hours; in the steepest parcels, mule work is used to avoid compacting fragile soils. Winemaking follows the geology: small lots, careful picking, and élevage that aims for clarity rather than make‑up.
Style is shaped through parcel selection, gentle extraction and an élevage that privileges structure over effects. Palacios’ Priorat isn’t a style; it’s topography translated into tension. His compass points to Burgundy and the region’s monastic memory, yet the expression stays unmistakably Mediterranean.Alvaro Palacios
Around Priorat, Alvaro Palacios stands for a winery that consistently connects origin and craft.
Slate is the metronome of Priorat. Under Álvaro Palacios, llicorella—crumbled schist shot with quartz—sets the pace: fast drainage, fierce heat reflection, and vines forced to root deep for every drop. When Palacios arrived in Gratallops in 1989, he chose these vertiginous terraces and their old Garnacha and Cariñena instead of easy volume. Work here is measured in hand steps, not tractor hours; in the steepest parcels, mule work is used to avoid compacting fragile soils. Winemaking follows the geology: small lots, careful picking, and élevage that aims for clarity rather than make‑up.
Style is shaped through parcel selection, gentle extraction and an élevage that privileges structure over effects. Palacios’ Priorat isn’t a style; it’s topography translated into tension. His compass points to Burgundy and the region’s monastic memory, yet the expression stays unmistakably Mediterranean.
