2011 Nit de Nin

(60% garnacha and 40% carinena; aged for 18 months in French oak, one-third of it new): Opaque ruby. Heady blueberry and cassis aromas are joined by notes of smoky Indian spices and fresh flowers. Sappy and sweet, with spicy, incisive dark fruit flavors enlivened by bright, harmonious acidity. Deep but lively, with excellent finishing clarity and sweet persistence.

The 2011 Nit De Nin is from a single vineyard, Mas d’en Cacador, a steep, north-facing vineyard in the village of Porrera on slate soils where vines are very old – all over 70 years of age. Yields in this vineyard were six hectoliters per hectare. The blend is 60% Garnacha, 40% Carinena, full-cluster fermented in demi-muids and aged for 10 months in barrel and eight months in foudre. It is very aromatic, flowery and mineral, reminiscent of a great Barolo, tar and roses, with telluric, earthy notes of peat and graphite intermixed with aromas of red, black and blue fruit. There’s more concentration and depth than in the Planetes, but equally great acidity that gives freshness and makes it very drinkable. It’s a savory, umami-driven wine, big, but it does not shout, it whispers, and you have to listen to it. A great effort for a very difficult vintage that could be drunk now or aged for a long time. Drink now-2024. ||Ester Nin is the winemaker at Clos i Terrases, the producers of the famous Clos Erasmus, where she also crafts a couple of small cuvees from biodinamically farmed vineyards with the help of her husband Carlos Ortiz. All their vineyards are in Porrera, all on slate soils. In 2011, she harvested very early to keep the freshness.||Imported by Eric Solomon, European Cellars, Charlotte, NC; tel. (704) 358-1565 Wine Advocate.February, 2014