2008 Rioja Gran Reserva
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Tasting notes
(aged for two years in American oak barrels, 25% of them new) Deep red. A complex bouquet evokes ripe dark berries, cherry pit, vanilla and incense, with a smoky mineral nuance adding vibrancy. Sappy, seamless and broad on the palate, offering sweet blackberry and floral pastille flavors and a touch of mocha. Lingers with very good tenacity on the fruit-dominated finish, which is framed by supple tannins that come in late.
Critic scores
Average Score
Jeb Dunnuck
Luis Gutiérrez, Wine Advocate
More reviews and scores
Aged 26 months in 25% new American oak, the 2008 Gran Reserva (97% Tempranillo and 3% Graciano) is another blockbuster effort from Sierra Cantabria. Smoke, graphite, lead pencil shavings, and loads of black currants, black cherries, and licorice all jump from the glass of this beauty. Medium to full-bodied, concentrated, and textured, with ripe tannin, it's going to evolve nicely for another two decades or more.
The 2008 Gran Reserva has been in bottle since 2011, so it's quite polished and developed. It's mostly Tempranillo with a 2% pinch of Graciano from vines over 30 years old in San Vicente de la Sonsierra, fermented at controlled temperatures and matured in American oak barrels for 26 months. It was a cold and wet vintage, and at this stage in its development, the wine shows very strong smoky aromas, toast and charred oak. At almost age ten, the fruit is fading into the background and there is more aromatic complexity. The palate shows very good freshness, with some acidity still noticeable from the vintage conditions and also from their use of higher-altitude vineyards for this bottling. 10,000 bottles produced.