Winemaker Notes
Cherry red with a very deeply colored blue rim, showing great density and amplitude upon swirling. Very fruity on the nose, with notes of licorice and redcurrant underscored by subtle hints of cinnamon and juniper. Rounded and full-bodied in the mouth, with a glycerine texture. Powerful attack, with noticeably seductive tannins and a freshness that sustains it through the palate, making it long and enjoyable. The black fruit and fragrant notes of oak return again on the finish.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Dark, spicy notes of mocha and graphite here with a dusty and earthy edge, as well as dried blueberries and cassis. The palate has a sinewy thread of tannin with earthy and dark-fruit flavors. Drink or hold.
Hailed as the star red variety in Spain’s most celebrated wine region, Tempranillo from Rioja, or simply labeled, “Rioja,” produces elegant wines with complex notes of red and black fruit, crushed rock, leather, toast and tobacco, whose best examples are fully capable of decades of improvement in the cellar.
Rioja wines are typically a blend of fruit from its three sub-regions: Rioja Alta, Rioja Alavesa and Rioja Oriental, although specific sub-region (zonas), village (municipios) and vineyard (viñedo singular) wines can now be labeled. Rioja Alta and Alavesa, at the highest elevations, are considered to be the source of the brightest, most elegant fruit, while grapes from the warmer and drier, Rioja Oriental, produce wines with deep color, great body and richness.