The 2019 Xarel.lo Pairal has a very acute herbal note of fennel that is eminently Mediterranean but providing freshness, and it is super tasty, with a salty finish. The palate is medium-bodied and austere, with subtle spiciness from aging in chestnut barrels (six months), which was the tradition, large foudres in the pas but 425-liter barrels now. Superb! It has 13% alcohol and a pH of 3.26—moderate alcohol and ripeness and good freshness and balance in a very complete vintage. 2,000 bottles were filled in October 2020.

I tasted two vintages of the top Xarello, including the 2015 Xarel.lo Pairal from a small crop of much riper grapes than the 2016 that I tasted next to it. This wine is riper and fuller than the 2016, but the production was the same. So, what you see are the differences provided by the conditions of the vintage. I love the intense and varietal nose here—open, expressive, aromatic and fully Mediterranean—and the palate combines power and elegance. It shows some development, but it has some mileage in the bottle. It finishes dry and with the distinct saltiness on the finish. 1,980 bottles produced. It was bottled in March 2016.

The 2014 Xarel.lo Pairal is produced in a traditional way: fermentation in chestnut barrels, which keeps the varietal character of the wine better than oak ones, with the idea of a long aging in bottle. It's produced with fruit from their El Cirerer vineyard that was planted in 1949 on a stony and chalky slope. It fermented and matured in 450-liter chestnut wood barrels for four months. The palate is fresh and vibrant, with salty, tasty flavors and finish, harmonious and complex. 1,800 bottles and 56 magnums were filled in March 2015, as it's kept in bottle for a couple of years before it's released.

I found the 2013 Xarel.lo Pairal unusually exotic and tropical, with aromas of mango and papaya, something herbal and spicy that made me think of a Sauvignon Blanc. Maybe it's the development and I caught it in a weird phase, but it was completely different from the 2014. It felt riper and more polished in the palate. 2,054 bottles produced. It was bottled in March 2014 after four months in 450-liter chestnut oak barrels where it fermented.

Despite having jumped a few vintages, we're still on the 2012 Xarello Pairal, which feels more advanced, and especially riper next to the cooler 2013s I tasted with it. It's sourced from a sloped vineyard planted in 1949 called El Cirerer and produced following an old tradition, fermenting and aging it in chestnut barrels with indigenous yeasts. There is certain rusticity here, call it character if you like, and in this Mediterranean vintage it shows lots of dry herbs, fennel and aniseed aromas. The palate feels polished and reveals moderate acidity. It was bottled in March 2013 after some four months in barrel. I almost always wish they'd release this wine a little earlier, and 'm already looking forward to the 2013. 4,393 bottles produced.