Carlos Serres Reserva 2012
Winemaker Notes
Critical Acclaim
All VintagesInoffensive if not particularly vivacious, this trades in dried redcurrants and vanilla. The palate has a good and surprising serving of fruit, and the tannins are resolved, but not overly drying. Drink now.
Carlos Serres was a pioneer in Rioja. In 1896 he established one of the first wineries in Haro, the heart of Rioja. He was an instrumental figure in promoting the early exports of Rioja wines. Today, the Bodega remains family-owned and operated and is one of only a few centenarian producers in Rioja. The estate is Southeast of Haro, just 800 yards from the winery and spreads out over nearly 150 acres of premium Rioja Alta vineyards with vines average 20+ years old. Bodegas Carlos Serres sets out to remain one of the most internationally-renowned and influential wineries in Spain.
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.