Why it matters
The producer
Cellers Unió began in Reus as a cooperative wine organisation, then grew into a network linking local production with several Catalan appellations. Twenty of its 186 member cooperatives have their own winemaking facilities, so the group combines shared reach with separate cellar bases. The scale is visible in the range: the same name can lead to a DO Montsant Garnacha, a Priorat red, a Cava or a wine from Terra Alta.
Perlat Garnacha gives the group its most direct grape and place reference. It is presented as a monovarietal Garnacha from DO Montsant, aged for more than 10 months in oak. Cellers Unió also makes Llicorella Vitis 60, a Priorat wine from vines over 60 years old around Poboleda. One bottle leads with rounded Garnacha fruit; the other moves toward darker mineral flavours and firmer tannin.
Place and vineyards
Where the wines begin
Reus is the cooperative's founding city, where Unió was formally constituted at Teatre Fortuny on 26 October 1942. The wines, however, come from a wider Catalan geography. The Cellers Unió winery serving DO Montsant is in Els Guiamets, in the southern part of Montsant, while Llicorella Vitis 60 is tied to old vines around Poboleda in Priorat.
That distinction changes what appears on the label. DO Montsant identifies the appellation around the Els Guiamets operation and supports the place name carried by Perlat Garnacha. Priorat places a different regional designation beside the old-vine Llicorella Vitis 60. Reus names the cooperative's origin; Montsant and Priorat name the wine's regional setting.
In the cellar
Vineyards and cellar
Cellers Unió promotes sustainable farming among its members and provides technical, logistical, legal and consultancy support. Across 4,400 hectares, that support connects vineyard work with a cooperative system large enough to serve many villages and production sites. The documented farming approach is shared assistance, not a claim that every bottle in the portfolio follows one identical method.
The cellar choices become more distinct at bottle level. Perlat Garnacha spends more than 10 months in oak, adding shape and length to rounded Garnacha fruit and delicate tannins. Llicorella Vitis 60 spends at least 15 months in oak and draws on old vines around Poboleda, giving the Priorat wine a darker, more mineral register with tannins that move from plush toward sturdy.
Wines to know
The range in view
The portfolio spans six Catalan categories: Priorat, Montsant, Tarragona, Terra Alta, Catalunya and Cava. That list describes range architecture rather than one flavour profile. Montsant supplies the grape-led Perlat Garnacha, while Priorat supplies Llicorella Vitis 60, an old-vine red with darker flavour and firmer tannin. Tarragona, Terra Alta, Catalunya and Cava extend the group into other regional and sparkling styles.
Perlat Garnacha is a red wine built around one grape, Garnacha, and one appellation, DO Montsant. More than 10 months in oak sit behind its rounded fruit, spice and delicate tannins. Llicorella Vitis 60 is the older-vine Priorat counterpoint, with a darker mineral flavour, plush-to-sturdy tannins and at least 15 months in oak. Together, the bottles show how the cooperative's range shifts with appellation, vineyard age, grape and élevage.
A useful way in
A bottle to begin with
Start with Perlat Garnacha. It is a DO Montsant red made from Garnacha and aged for more than 10 months in oak, so the label joins grape, appellation and cellar method in one bottle. Expect rounded fruit, spice, delicate tannins and a longer finish shaped by oak. It is the most direct way to taste the Montsant side of Cellers Unió before moving to the older-vine Priorat style of Llicorella Vitis 60.