This popular Tempranillo is nicely aged, as Riojas should be, with a nose of plums, earth, cassis and light spice. It’s perfectly mature right now with integrated fruit, smooth tannins and a spicy bite from the sweet oak. A bit rustic on the finish, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing.
This Reserva from a good vintage shows good depth of fruit interwoven with fine spice and cedary pencil box. Blackcurrant, blackberry and firm tannic grip hold sway on the palate, finishing very dry. Will continue to develop over the next 3-5 years and more.
Refined and integrated fine red fruit and spice on the nose reveals raspberry, red currant, cinnamon, clove and subtle oak. Dark fruit comes to the fore on the palate showing blackberry and dark chocolate notes. Tannins and acidity remain a bit stiff. Drinking well now with food, better with a year or 2 in the cellar.
Clear very deep plum red. Medium-intensity nose, earthy, with mushrooms, cassis and blackberry. Very fruity and concentrated, with New-World tastes of blueberries and blackberries, but high acidity and firm tannins give this an Old-World structure. Will improve for several more years.
For purists, this old-school Rioja will rock your world. Strawberry, raspberry, cherry, cedar, tomato concentrate, balsamic, dried herbs/flowers coil together to make for one impressive red. Brilliant length, fresh acid and no hard edges make for a divine drop of Tempranillo.
From the lesser-known Somontano region in the shadow of the Pyrenees, this one opens with charming scents of white flowers and pleasantly ripe citrus notes. Generously rounded citrus and stone fruit, especially apricot, appear on the palate, with good weight and refreshing acidity. Smoothly textured in the mouth, it finishes with long, citrusy fruit freshness.
Tempranillo is splashed with Garnacha and Graciano in this youthful Rioja. Juicy red currant, cherry and plum has an abundance of joyful florals and a modicum of tannic grip, perfectly placed to frame the sun-warmed fruit. A dusting of peppery spicing closes out the finish. This spends 18 months in older American oak, all ably gobbled up by the fruit. This is for drinking now, ideally with sausage/arugula pizza mid-week.