Winemaker Notes
Purple with ruby highlights, this wine shows up-front aromas of raspberries and black cherries with undertones of leather and spice. On the palate, it is expansive and rich.
Pair with lamb and apricot tajines, prime rib, tomato stews, or green lentil-based dishes.
Blend: 90% Tempranillo, 6% Graciano, 4% Maturana Tinta
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Dark ruby in the glass, this wine has a nose of black cherry, dark plums and charcuterie. Sleek tannins slowly build on the palate, backing flavors of pomegranate, ripe summer cherry, roasted tomato, white chocolate and thyme. The finish is marked with a splash of cranberry sauce.
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Decanter
Sour cherry, crab apples, bitter notes, a touch volatile. The acidity is very evident in the heart of the wine, which lasts well, though there is great quality lying behind.
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.