1982 La Rioja Alta 890 Gran Reserva

The flagship wines of this bodega are their 904 and 890 Gran Reservas. These wines spend 8-10 years in cask and are then bottle aged even longer. They are beautifully made wines with a complexity not unlike a mature vintage of a top class Bordeaux Graves. Except for its strong vanillin component, the 1982 Gran Reserva 890 could easily be mistaken for a 25-year old Haut-Brion. The 1982 Gran Reserva 890 reveals a lead pencil, charcoal smoke, hot bricks, cedar, strawberry, cherry, and fruitcake-scented nose that is one of the most complex aromatic profiles anyone could suck in past their olfactory senses. In the mouth, the wine is medium-bodied and elegant, with delicate, intense, but light flavors. This is a gorgeous, complex, old style Rioja the likes of which are impossible to find from other producers in this renowned Spanish appellation. The two newest releases of the flagship, traditionally made Riojas are the 1989 Gran Reserva 904 and 1982 Gran Reserva 890. These examples are the antithesis of modern day, deep purple-colored, grapy, fat, rich wines. They are the epitome of old-style Riojas that achieve their complexity from delicacy, subtlety, and exceptional aromatics. Neither of these offerings will cut a weighty impression on the palate, but aromatically, both are knock-outs. Moreover, their flavors are beautifully balanced, with no aggressiveness. Readers must recognize that this traditionally run firm tends to make wines that have spent considerable time in oak, and are much lighter-colored, more mature, and clearly ready to drink when released. The antithesis of modern-day fruit and oak-driven wines, they are all characterized by soft, tobacco, cedary, cigar-box-scented noses, with sweet fruit, and light garnet/ruby colors with amber edges. However, do not judge these offerings by their feeble colors, as they are very aromatic, and their flavors are nuanced and complex. Importer: A Christopher Cannan Selection, Europvin USA, Watertown, MA; tel. (617) 924-7620