Finca Tobella Priorat Negre Bocíns
Pairs with: Grilled rosemary-garlic lamb chops, a smoky wood-fired venison pizza, slow-braised beef short ribs, or roasted duck breast drizzled with a tart dark-cherry reduction.
Good for: Introducing a California Cabernet or Syrah devotee to the intense, slate-driven world of Spanish reds; upgrading a cozy weekend steak night with a bold, multi-layered blend; or savoring a modern Priorat that beautifully bridges old-world soul with New World precision.
Grape: A unique, contemporary Priorat blend featuring approximately 65% Garnacha (Grenache), 32% Syrah, and 3% Cabernet Sauvignon.
I am from: Gratallops, Priorat DOCa, Catalonia, Spain (Sourced from steep, dramatic terraces carved into the region's famous licorella slate soils).
The Story: Finca Tobella is a captivating, cross-continental labor of love masterminded by the husband-and-wife winemaking team John Lipscomb and Núria Tobella. Núria, a native of Catalonia, and John, an American, bring a fascinating blend of cultures and backgrounds to the cellar. Both highly trained at the prestigious University of California, Davis, they spent years honing their craft at iconic estates across Napa Valley and Sonoma—including the legendary Opus One. Yet, they found themselves completely seduced by the raw, untamed majesty and vertigo-inducing challenges of Priorat. Returning to Núria’s roots, they established their personal boutique estate in the celebrated village of Gratallops, the beating historical heart of the appellation.
Priorat is globally renowned for its terrifyingly steep hillsides of licorella—a unique, ancient soil composed of dark, shimmering slate and fractured quartzite. To survive this harsh, water-scarce terrain, the vine roots must drill dozens of meters straight into the solid rock. John and Núria treat these low-yielding vines with meticulous care, combining their rigorous, state-of-the-art California technical training with deep respect for local Catalan terroir.
For the "Bocíns" Negre, they apply a brilliant winemaking twist: the red Grenache undergoes a gentle carbonic maceration to maximize explosive fruit aromatics and a plush mouthfeel, while 40% of the finished blend is aged for six months in premium French oak barrels. It is a highly deliberate, polished style that beautifully captures Priorat's famous mineral power while taming its wilder, rustic edges.
Why You'll Love Me: It is bold, deeply expressive, and wonderfully complex—a full-bodied red that feels like a fascinating hybrid of a velvety Priorat and a structured, peppery Bordeaux. In the glass, it pours a deep, intense purple color with brilliant ruby outlines. The nose is a lively and atmospheric playground, instantly greeting you with a fragrant bouquet of ripe red cherries, dark plums, and sweet red licorice, seamlessly layered with sophisticated undertones of cracked black pepper, wild Mediterranean scrub, vanilla bean, and a faint, smoky puff of wood toast.
On the palate, it delivers a gorgeous structural ride. The carbonic maceration gives the wine a wonderfully rounded, juicy, and almost jammy fruit fleshiness upon entry that blankets the tongue. However, the true, muscular nature of the Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon quickly steps in, framing the mid-palate with a firm, grippy, and slightly chewy spine of sneaky tannins. Thanks to the high-altitude mountain air and the mineral crunch of the slate soils, a vibrant beam of natural acidity keeps the dense weight perfectly light on its feet, sailing into a long, dry, and warming finish marked by a lingering trail of savory spices and dark cocoa.
