At A Glance
- Field
- Detail
- Producer
- Celler de l’Era
- Project
- Family project at Mas de les Moreres
- Village
- Cornudella de Montsant, Catalonia
- Designation
- D.O. Montsant
- Red wine
- Bri
- Grapes in Bri
- Garnacha, Cariñena and Syrah
- Fermentation
- One grape variety and one vineyard plot per vat
The Producer
Mas de les Moreres carries Celler de l’Era’s past and present in one house. Historical references date the property to the seventeenth century, although it may be older. Part of the house served as a guest house during much of the nineteenth century, and a chamber beside today’s tasting room was once a fermentation wine vat.
Celler de l’Era began its family project at Mas de les Moreres in 2002. Its wines carry D.O. Montsant, and the producer’s vineyard area is 72 hectares. Bri is a red from Montsant made from Garnacha, Cariñena and Syrah. Today the house contains the family project, the cellar and the tasting room, with Bri as its three grape red.
Place
Mas de les Moreres sits in Cornudella de Montsant, Catalonia. The address is in Tarragona, Spain. Cornudella de Montsant is the village of the project, while D.O. Montsant is a designation of origin, a regulated regional category for the wines.
Bri is a red from Montsant. The bottle carries the wider regional name, while the producer remains tied to the specific farmhouse and village.
Vineyards And Cellar
The producer presents six vineyard sites: La Plana, La Plana del Mas, Costers dels Barrancs, Coster de la Plana, Solanet and Coster de l’Era. Average production is 50,000 litres. Fermentation uses 17 vats ranging from 20 to 70 hectolitres.
Each vat holds must from one grape variety and one vineyard plot. Keeping those inputs separate preserves individual lots during fermentation, so the cellar handles plot and variety as distinct material before a blend is made. The ageing inventory comprises 45 French oak barrels of 500 litres and 10 American oak barrels. Bottles use natural cork.
Wines
At vineyard level, Celler de l’Era presents individual sites. At bottle level, Bri is one of its best known red wines, a red from Montsant made from Garnacha, Cariñena and Syrah. The range has two concrete forms, named vineyard places and a multi grape red.
Across the producer’s wines, concentration and freshness combine with balanced power. Bri places those house attributes in a red made from three grape varieties.
In The Glass
Bri 2016 brings black fruit, fresh mint and violet petals on the nose, with pronounced intensity and length. On the palate it is powerful, fresh and approachable. Its tannins subtly extend persistence. The three grape varieties arrive as one blend, and the aroma and palate describe the finished red rather than separate varietal wines.
A Bottle To Understand It
Bri 2016 is the first bottle to open from Celler de l’Era. It is a red from Montsant made from Garnacha, Cariñena and Syrah at 13.5% alcohol. It ferments in stainless steel tanks and macerates for 22 days until pressing, then matures for 12 months in 225 litre French oak barrels with fine grain and light toast.
Fine grain changes the feel of wood contact, while light toast contributes less smoke and char than heavier toast. The bottle combines three named grapes with one vintage and one specified ageing path under the Montsant designation.
Final Word
A family project begun at Mas de les Moreres works in a house with a former fermentation vat beside the tasting room. Celler de l’Era’s bottles carry D.O. Montsant and use natural cork.
Sources
- www.cellerdelera.com/en/main-home1-3
- www.cellerdelera.com/en/el-celler-3
- www.cellerdelera.com/en/les-vinyes3
- www.cellerdelera.com/en/vinificacio3
- www.turismepriorat.org/en/what-to-do/wine-route/celler-de-lera
- wineguide.wein.plus/celler-de-l-era
- www.bodeboca.com/vino/bri-2016
- www.systembolaget.se/produkt/vin/celler-de-l-era-7542001
- www.bodeboca.com/bodegas/celler-lera