Page 34 - Cork & Tee Sample Program Flipbook, 2018

Day 3: Excursion to the Boutique and Beautiful Wine Region of Priorat. This morning you
will depart Casa Fuster at 8:30 a.m. and travel just under 2 hrs to the southwest to a corner of
Catalonia that is a world away from the bustle of Barcelona, yet a place where very much
innovation is occurring. The steeply-terraced vineyards and groves of silver-leafed olive trees are
framed by the majestic Monsant Mountains. It becomes apparent that the dramatic topography of
the region dictates that all vineyard work must be done by hand. Upon entering Priorat, you truly
will feel like you have been transported back in time to a wonderful and charming hidden valley.
Rachel or one of her colleagues will guide you through the Priorat and you will have a separate
driver.

Wine Guru Robert Parker has predicted that Priorat will be the most prominent wine region in
Spain in less than a decade. The region is home to a cadre of enterprising winemakers, drawn by
the old vines and the distinctive native grapes and slate-dominated soils. The wines here
continually win international praise and awards. Within this small, pristine and very beautiful
region, you will visit two bodegas (note that bodegas cannot be confirmed until program
booking), one very new and the other the pioneering Clos de l’Obac, arguably the premier
bodega in Priorat. Start with a visit to Clos de l’Obac winery in the village of Gratallops, where
the new style of Priorat wines was first made in the 1970s. Tour and enjoy tastings at Clos de
l’Obac winery with owner Carles Pastrana or his wife, Mariona. Carles and Mariona came to
Priorat in the 1970s and were part of the group who recovered old vineyards and started to make
a new style of Priorat wines.

Afterwards, drive by the ruined monastery of Scala Dei to get an understanding of what brought
the Carthusian monks to build themselves a home in the Montsant Mountains and how their
knowledge and influence led to the origins of the winemaking fame of the region. The Scala Dei

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