Clos Erasmus - Laurel 2019

Robert Parker, 96 pts

The second wine here and one that is easier to drink, the 2018 Laurel was produced with fruit from the younger vines, a couple of barrels that are declassified from Clos Erasmus and the Cabernet Sauvignon, more or less 70% Garnacha and 15% each Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon. It has good ripeness and still a pH of 3.3. It fermented mostly in oak vats and 2,000-liter concrete vats with indigenous yeasts and matured for 18 months in 20,000-liter oak and concrete vats, second use barriques and some clay amphorae. It's a bright translucent ruby color and has a perfumed and delicate nose with notes of orange peel and flowers; this is the most elegant and ethereal vintage of Laurel as far as I can remember, with red rather than black fruit and a kind of cranberry quality. The palate is medium-bodied, textured and fluid, with subtleness, balance and very fine tannins. The oak is perfectly integrated, and the wine is easy to drink, approachable and very pleasurable right now. It's a fresh vintage with energy and finesse, quite different from previous vintages. I love it.

Born in Paris but of Swiss-German ancestry, Daphne Glorian spent her early years
shuttling between Switzerland and France before settling in Gratallops. “I like to
make lists of what needs to be done each day, and in Spain, I’m happy if I manage
a quarter of it,” is how Daphne explains her life now in Spain.
While studying law in Paris in her 20s, Daphne first discovered fine wine while
working as the office manager for Kit Stevens MW. What was simply a job to
make ends meet would soon become her advocation. Shortly after taking the job
with Kit, she met René Barbier and Álvaro Palacios, who were both so passionate
about a place called the Priorat that she decided she needed to visit and see it for
herself.
In her early vintages, Daphne relied on her friends René Barbier and Álvaro
Palacios for advice, but guided by her instincts and her training in Burgundy,
where she first discovered wine, her wines have evolved to become some of the
most sought-after references for the Priorat – and along the way, some of the most
desired wines in the world. Despite having received multiple 100 point scores
from top critics, Daphne has kept Clos i Terrasses modest in size and has not
dramatically increased her production of Clos Erasmus, preferring to create a
second, equally expressive wine, Laurel.