Clos Dominic

Spanish winemakers Dominic Bairaguet and her husband, Francisco “Paco” Castillo-Serrano, were both born and raised in the tiny town of Porrera, in the renowned D.O.Q. Priorat. Both claim to be perfectionists--perhaps that’s why the wines of Clos Dominic taste like perfection in every sip.

This husband and wife team hires only family and good friends to help them harvest their steep, rocky vineyard slopes. They select only the finest grapes from vines more than 100 years old--vines that produce small, intensely flavored berries. Clos Dominic's Vinyes Altes (high vineyard) is a blend of old-vine Cariñena and Garnacha from centennial vines that grow on steep hillsides of black slate rock called llicorella. Extremely low yields from this site result in wines of exceptional concentration and lushness on the palate. Vinyes Baixes (low vineyard) combines Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Picapoll Negre with old-vine Cariñena and Garnacha. As the name suggests, this wine comes from a vineyard at the base of the steep Vinyes Altes property. Even though this vineyard is significantly younger, plantings in the slate rock keep yields low and varietal character intense.

Clos Dominic's only white wine, Blanc, comes from centennial vines of three white grape varieties native to Spain--White Garnacha, White Picapoll and White Macabeu. Also grown on the steep slate hillsides of Vinyes Altes, this intensely flavored white wine has golden yellow color and rich aromas and flavors of apricot, nutmeg and intriguing minerals. In 2007, Clos Dominic releases the first Vinyes Altes Selección Andreu, a very limited-production wine from the finest vineyard blocks. This intense, expressive wine will be produced only in select vintage years.