Winemaker Notes
Licenciado Reserva has a deep ruby ??red color, clean and bright. On the nose it is frank, with intense notes of ripe fruit perfectly blended with spices, cocoa and vanilla from the combination of American and French barrels where it has been aged for 18 months. On the palate it is sweet, powerful and long, leaving a persistent sensation and hints of plum and toasted bread.
Professional Ratings
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Decanter
Bodegas Burgo Viejo is the property of six farming families and comprises more than 200ha of vineyards in the Rioja Oriental region, from where the more full-bodied styles of Rioja are produced (see ‘Regional Profile’, p42). Historically, the bodegas sold their high-quality grapes to neighbouring wineries, until the arrival of the young winemaker Gorka Etxebarria, who saw the potential for them to produce excellent wines themselves. Tempranillo is a firm favourite for this producer, despite Garnacha being the most widely planted grape in the area, and they certainly make a success of it, going by the many accolades they have received over the years. Sarah Jane Evans MW: Distinctly pure, vivid reserva, precise style: limpid fruit, brisk acidity, notable but well balanced oak. Classic. Simon Field MW: Intense colour, powerful aromas of tar and blue fruit; minty savoury, rich, lifted and long; an impressive reserva statement of intent. Pierre Mansour: Classy, spicy black fruit, full, round, generous – depth yet beautifully balanced, very classy, effortless.
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Vinous
Limpid ruby. Spice-laced cherry, black raspberry, vanilla and tobacco aromas show very good clarity and pick up a hint of smokiness as the wine stretches out. Sweet and expansive on the palate, offering intense dark berry, floral pastille, cola and vanilla flavors sharpened by a subtle peppery nuance. Shows impressive energy and minerally thrust on the persistent finish, which is given shape by smooth, harmonious tannins.
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.