The Wine Advocate - May 16 2024 - La Creu Alta 2019 - 94+/100 - 2025-2032
The old-vine cuvée from different small vineyards planted with Cariñena, the 2019 La Creu Alta fermented destemmed with a long fermentation in concrete. It matured in new barrels for 18 months followed by a further 12 months in foudre. Despite the oak treatment, the wine comes through as less oaky than in some previous vintages, with a mealy character of cereals and cookies, damsons and black cherries. It's heady and ripe, from a very warm and ripe year when the wine achieved 15.5% alcohol but still kept a pH of 3.4. It has a powerful, full-bodied palate and finishes dry and long, with some tannins that would welcome powerful food and/or more time in bottle. 3,500 bottles were filled in March 2022.