Les Creste

Mas Doix was resurrected in 1998 by the Doix and Llagostera families on land their ancestors farmed for generations in Poboleda, one of Priorat's cooler, higher-altitude villages. Les Creste is the estate's entry point into the appellation's signature terroir, yet it draws on the same llicorella — the fractured black slate and quartz schist that forces vine roots metres deep in search of moisture — that defines Priorat's most sought-after bottlings. That vertical root architecture concentrates mineral tension and limits yields naturally, without intervention.

The blend centres on Grenache and Carignan, with a proportion of old-vine fruit delivering structural depth beyond the wine's price tier. Fermentation takes place in stainless steel with indigenous yeasts, preserving site character, followed by aging in used French oak barrique — avoiding new-oak imposition on the schist-driven mineral core. Malolactic fermentation integrates the naturally firm acidity typical of Poboleda's elevation.

What separates Les Creste from most entry-level Priorat is the genuine old-vine Carignan component, a grape that demands decades of age to yield complexity and that most producers reserve for flagship cuvées. The wine drinks well on release but gains further definition over three to five years in bottle.