Palacios Les Aubaguetes

This is a marvellous vineyard in the village of Bellmunt, an old mining town on the
southern border of Priorat. Aubaguetes (meaning, the shady vineyard, thanks to its cool
northern exposure) faces across the Siurana valley to its sister over the way, Finca Dofi in
Gratallops. It’s a 115 year-old patch planted to its own Garnatxa genetics with 20%
Caranyena and some white grapes, all ‘grown
en costers’. It’s a small vineyard of 1.34 hectares, much of which remains unplanted
since Priorat’s abandonment post-Civil War.
Álvaro has long taken fruit from Aubaguetes. Every year his componentry tasting bench
ended up with the same two wines set aside as the most glorious expressions of Priorat:
L’Ermita, and Aubaguetes. Álvaro purchased Aubaguetes (from Salvador Torre, who was
ready to retire at 93) in 2013, and after 2 years of viticultural renovations (raising the
bush vines ‘en parra’, restoring old pruning methods, and re-asserting organic work with
mules), Aubaguetes entered the market as a Vi de Finca wine from 2015.