Spanish dinner at Think Cafe

Chicago, IL
Tasted Thursday, August 2, 2007 by Nanda with 787 views

Introduction

eBob offline pulled together for Todd Tucker who was in town from Arizona. Great to meet some new folks and hang out with friends. Impressive line up did not disappoint. There was a month's worth of great drinking here ... embarrassment of the riches to be sure!

Flight 1 - WELCOME WHITE (1 Note)

  • 2004 Bodegas Naia Rueda Naiades 91 Points

    Spain, Castilla y León, Rueda

    Light gold. Rich nose of minerals, tropical fruit and smoke. Chock-full of flavor and fleshy body. Grapefruits and smoky minerals. Rich fruit is well balanced by zippy acidity.

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Flight 2 - 1996 (2 Notes)

  • 1996 Bodegas Vega-Sicilia Ribera del Duero Valbuena 5° 87 Points

    Spain, Castilla y León, Ribera del Duero

    Dark ruby in color with a nose of dark cherries, spice, earth and underbrush. Puckering acid on the front palate compacts the overall body and flavor profile. Gets better with food but still has a strong acidic streak that I can't get over.

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  • 1996 Bodegas Sierra Cantabria Rioja Colección Privada 91 Points

    Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja

    Ruby in color and lightening at the rim. Deliciously sweet nose has vanilla, dark cherries and cocoa. Medium bodied on the palate with rich, toasty dark cherries. Fine tannins are in harmony with the fruit. This is ready to go. Done in a modern style (made from late-harvest fruit, according to RMP's note) and not overly complex but very tasty and easy to drink.

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Flight 3 - TORRE MUGA (2 Notes)

  • 1991 Bodegas Muga Rioja Torre Muga 94 Points

    Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja

    Medium ruby in color. Elegant with layers of seductive old world aromas. Licorice, flowers, dark cassis, cedar, leather, mushrooms and light toast notes waft from the glass. The medium bodied palate is well proportioned. Soft, mature fruits glide across the palate. Graceful finish. Not what one would expect from a Torre Muga! 12.5% alcohol.

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  • 1998 Bodegas Muga Rioja Torre Muga 92 Points

    Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja

    Dark ruby with powerful, dense aromas of dark cherries and pencil lead. Palate is full bodied with plush fruits that expand across the mid-palate. Delicious with rich and chunky fruit, spice and toast. Modern, well endowed but with balance that pulls it all together.

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Flight 4 - GANUZA (2 Notes)

  • 1996 Fernando Remírez de Ganuza Rioja 97 Points

    Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alavesa, Rioja

    Dark, dark ruby in color. The screaming nose is so delineated and pure with each individual aroma component pronounced and effusive. Plums, chocolate, smoke, pencil lead and spice. Palate is equally as focused. Rich but sleek fruit is pure and concentrated. Dark cherries, tar, chocolate and spice. Structure is present but well cloaked by fruit. A wow wine.

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  • 1998 Fernando Remírez de Ganuza Rioja 92 Points

    Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alavesa, Rioja

    Dark, dark ruby in color. Rich aromatics have plums and chocolate - but do not show the focus found on the 1996. Palate has dark fruits, minerals, chocolate and earth. Layered but not as tightly knit, focused or long as the 1996. Nice, but following the 1996 was a tough calling.

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Flight 5 - PRIORAT (4 Notes)

  • 1995 Alvaro Palacios Priorat Finca Dofí 94 Points

    Spain, Catalunya, Priorat

    Dark ruby. Nose has chocolate powder, spice and black minerals. Medium to full bodied and full of rich, pure and focused fruit. Licorice, minerals and dark fruits abound. Suave tannins are still present but in balance with the concentrated fruit. Full flavored, long finish.

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  • 1995 Clos Erasmus Priorat 89 Points

    Spain, Catalunya, Priorat

    Dark inky ruby. Reductive aromas on the nose show almost stewed dark fruit, earth, chocolate and spice. Palate has richly textured, crushed dark fruit and liquefied minerals. Delicious on the palate but the nose was a bit off on this bottle - disappointing.

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  • 1996 Clos Erasmus Priorat 95 Points

    Spain, Catalunya, Priorat

    Dark inky ruby. Effusive and powerful nose has chocolate, crushed cherries and minerals. Great purity and intensity on the palate. Concentrated fruits show chocolate and liquefied minerals. Long with a great balance of intense fruit, minerality and buoyancy. Excellent.

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  • 2003 Clos Erasmus Priorat Laurel 90 Points

    Spain, Catalunya, Priorat

    Ruby in color with a juicy black fruit, toast and floral nose. Palate has richly concentrated plush fruits. Acidity provides a juiciness factor to the ripe fruit. Easy to drink and tasty with no hard edges.

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Flight 6 - 2001 RIOJA (3 Notes)

  • 2001 Finca Allende Rioja Calvario 93 Points

    Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja

    Inky black in color with a striking nose that has black fruit, spice and spearmint. Palate has rich, focused and classy fruit. Black cherries, licorice, herbs and mint. Tannic on the finish with plenty of stuffing to go long.

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  • 2001 Artadi Rioja Pagos Viejos 96 Points

    Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alavesa, Rioja

    Inky ruby in color. Hugely aromatic, rich and complex nose shows layers of dark fruit, chocolate, spice, herbs and cigar ash. Outstanding palate has rich, conentrated and precise fruits. Suave tannins are well cloaked. Very impressive.

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  • 2001 Bodegas Altanza Rioja Lealtanza Reserva Miro 92 Points

    Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja

    Inky ruby. Delicious aromas are chocolate milkshake, dark cherries and caramel all the way. The palate is modernly styled with layers of plush fruits showing chocolate covered cherries, mocha and baking spices. Lively acidity keeps it fresh. Outstanding.

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Flight 7 - 2002 (2 Notes)

Flight 8 - BIG DOGS (2 Notes)

  • 2001 Bodega Numanthia Toro Numanthia 93 Points

    Spain, Castilla y León, Toro

    Inky purple with a dense, rich nose of dark fruits, spice, chocolate and minerals. Palate has tons of everything - concentrated dark fruits, sweet tannins and toasty oak. This is a huge effort, tasty enough now but needs time to integrate all of its massive parts.

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  • 2003 Bodegas AAlto Ribera del Duero P.S. 97 Points

    Spain, Castilla y León, Ribera del Duero

    Inky purple with a killer nose that does not stop. Aromas of ripe dark fruits, tar, chocolate and toast keep coming from the glass. Rich and luscious on the palate. Full of rich dark fruit and sweet tannin. SQN-like density and concentration is pulled off as this stays balanced and light on its feet. Very, very impressive.

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Closing

Thanks to all for the great wine.

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