Offre Wine in Black 'Rioja te quiero'

Always a good value Crianza, this is a cuvée of Tempranillo and 10% Mazuelo and Graciano from a range of vineyards in the Rioja Alta sub-region. Marked by its 80% American oak, it has appealing aromas of sweet spices and desiccated coconut, vibrant acidity and layers of bramble and black cherry.

Lovely finesse and balance to this red, with berries, light vanilla and dried flowers. Medium body, creamy tannins and a bright finish.

Youthful it may be for a Reserva, but this is a very well-balanced, forward expression of
Tempranillo with 15% Garnacha, Mazuelo and Graciano. Aged in a 70/30 mix of American
and French oak, it's bright and sweet, with chalky undertones and succulent raspberry and
red cherry fruit.

Ce domaine espagnol a été fondé à l’époque où la Rioja connaissait une envolée spectaculaire. Les échanges intenses avec la France y ont également contribué. C’est de là que venait Charles Serres, qui s’est rebaptisé « Carlos » plus tard et qui a ouvert les portes de sa propriété à Haro, dans le Nord du pays. Jusqu’à aujourd’hui, son vin rouge 'Gran Reserva' est synonyme de grand classique de la Rioja.

The very classical 2016 Gran Reserva comes with a very traditional label (they seem to have changed the image of most wines), including the golden wire net. It was produced with a selection of grapes from their El Estanque estate in Haro, a canonical 85% Tempranillo, 10% Graciano and 5% Mazuelo. It fermented in stainless steel and matured in French and American oak barrels for two years and was kept in bottle for another three. It has a textbook spicy nose with sweet spices, smoke and toast, berry fruit and herbs, a touch of forest floor and truffles, with a moderate 13.5% alcohol and balancing freshness. 47,200 bottles produced. It was bottled in 2021.

The scent of black cherry, tobacco leaf and chocolate sets the scene for flavors of red currant, raspberry, mocha, cherry pipe tobacco and a touch of eucalyptus. Sinewy tannins are offset by brilliant acidity that endures on the tongue and gums.

Autrefois, le vigneron Álvaro Palacios comptait parmi un petit groupe de pionniers qui ont redécouvert le Priorat, dans le Nord-Est de l’Espagne, au cours des années 1990. Après que ses vins de cette région eurent acquis une notoriété mondiale, l’appel de la maison est venu de la Rioja pour y reprendre le domaine familial. Les résultats parlent d’eux-mêmes.

Sumptuous aromas of plump cherries, leading into equally succulent fruits on the palate. Fresh acidity arrives lightly, and then grows, leading to a long taut finish, with the sligh echo of oak. Very young now, it will give much pleasure as it matures. A fine achievement: 100ha of certified organic vineyard, producing wines in quantity (some 500,000 bottles) and quality. Over the years Alvaro Palacios has transformed this from a 50% Tempranillo vineyard to firmly Garnacha-dominant, with a shift towards bush vines from double cordon. 95% Garnacha with 5% other traditional red varieties.

I had not yet tasted the 2021 La Montesa, and I'm glad I did. Álvaro Palacios was super proud of this vintage, and he told me that "many people consider it at the level of a very good Burgundy village at a fraction of the price!" It is indeed a great value, even more so in an exceptional year like 2021. But it was unmistakably Garnacha, with notes of garrigue and aromatic herbs, red cherries and flowers. It fermented with 20% full clusters in stainless steel with indigenous yeasts and matured in barrel for 12 months. It's clean and precise, with a lace texture, very fine tannins, flavors of red berries and herbs and a long, tasty, chalky finish. It has to be one of the finest vintages of Montesa to date. It has 14.3% alcohol, a pH of 3.5 and 5.3 grams of acidity. It's not a small cuvée; they produced 592,372 bottles! It was bottled in March 2023.

Beautiful berry-fruit purity with dark raspberries, pomegranate, some moss and subtle mineral and spices. Expressive and crunchy on the firm, medium-bodied palate with succulent berries and minerals. Pure and pithy finish. Drink or hold.