Álvaro Palacios
Pioneering Priorat estate whose old-vine Garnacha L'Ermita is one of Spain's most celebrated and expensive wines.
About Álvaro
Álvaro Palacios founded his Gratallops winery in Priorat in 1989, at age 25, as one of a small group of pioneers (often called the "Gang of Five," alongside René Barbier, Daphne Glorian, Josep Lluís Pérez and Carles Pastrana) who revived the steep llicorella-schist terraces of this remote Catalan region. Working with old-vine Garnacha and Cariñena, he produced wines of dramatic concentration and minerality that brought Priorat to international acclaim. His flagship, L'Ermita, is sourced from a precipitous northeast-facing parcel of vines planted in the early twentieth century and yields fewer than 5,000 bottles a vintage, making it one of Spain's rarest and most expensive reds. The portfolio also includes Finca Dofí and Les Terrasses. Palacios — who also runs the family's Palacios Remondo in Rioja and Descendientes de J. Palacios in Bierzo — is regarded as one of the most influential figures in modern Spanish wine.
Flagship wines
- L'Ermita
- Finca Dofí
- Les Terrasses
- Gratallops
Editorial notes
L'Ermita is virtually unobtainable at release; Les Terrasses is the entry point to the range and shows the house's Garnacha-driven Priorat style.