Keeping with my previous experiences with this wine, a full 24 hours before service, I decided to pop the cork, pour off a fraction of a glass, and let the wine aerate. The initial pour is quite in line with my previous experiences with this wine. It's muted and doesn't show much expressiveness. A slight bit of tart fruit, but an intense waxiness on the nose and palate. Not particularly oaky. Plenty of acidity and liveliness for a wine of this age. This is so intense and concentrated it feels bitter. Oxidative winemaking, yes, but definitely not oxidized.
On the day of service, this wine had indeed amply tightened up and lost some of the waxy aromatics, though it certainly still retained a good amount of them. There's far more weight now, and the fruit shows more intensely. Almost comical levels of concentration. It's still a white wine best treated as a red, and went fantastic with a chicken paella.
This drinks better than the other vintages that I've tasted; it has a nice roundness and more fruit than the other ones, making this more friendly and easier to enjoy. Slightly waxy and oxidative, and perhaps a bit more weighty than I would want for a simple rose -- this should be treated more like a straight-up dinner table wine.
A perennial winner in my book, especially for the price. The nose shows some saline notes but also plenty of waxiness. The palate is taut and concentrated, with layers of minerally concentration. This vintage shows a little more fruit than I would have expected too; I'm excited to have some of this in my cellar.
The fruit quality in this wine is magnificent. It's plummy, ripe, and somehow still crystalline in its purity and precision. Unfortunately, that is all marred by a horrible streak of oak -- the tannins here feel like they're all from the oak, and there's an unpleasant aftertaste as well. I can't help but think what an incredible bottle of wine this would be sans oak. A shame.
This didn't seem close to the bottle of this at the white truffle dinner last year -- the nose was completely overrun by pyrazines and the palate never really got to fill out. Perhaps it was a matter of not getting enough aeration?
I didn't realize that at some point in the past that the Conteisa had the Cerequio name attached to it. Anyway, this was showing fabulously. Ripe fruit with relatively high extraction for nebbiolo, but showing only modest hints of maturity. A good dose of tar as well; one of the best "Gaja" Barolos I've had.
Pushing the ripeness envelope a little much for my taste, with a slight hint of brett and some oakiness as well. A mix of red and black fruit, and some grainy tannins still despite the age, but otherwise a somewhat silky texture to this wine.
Incredibly young for a wine of 33 years. So much fruit and intensity, with moderate American oak notes. Fairly clean for Rioja, and perhaps in its youth it might have even been accused of being polished. But now, there's just a little earthiness from age complementing the fruit.
Very young. Needs lots of time to come together, but I could definitely see this evolving into something like the 1989. Lots of primary fruit and plenty of American oak.
I think others at the dinner liked this more than I did; this definitely seemed younger than 47 years though. Very red-fruited, light, and acid-driven, with a little barnyard Rioja funk. The midpalate does show a slight metallic tinniness that I found distracting.
La Rioja Alta smells like La Rioja Alta. There's something distinct about their American oak that I just can't really place. In any case, this is just about getting into a very nice drinking window, showing leathery dark fruits and tannins that are resolving. Plenty of gas in the tank.
Not quite my style. This was very dark, but the fruit felt a little muddled (probably something to do with grenache getting too ripe). Sweet, and lacking a backbone to keep everything in place, and the there seems to be some slight decaying notes to the fruit (as opposed to development).
Not a very convincing bottle. The fruit feels really backwards here, and only shows in the midpalate. Lots of gangly acidity, and lacking the perfume that I want in Volnay.
From magnum. Textbook. Moderate green notes, clearly a Bordeaux from a cooler vintage in that those green tones are a little more prominent versus the fruit. Some perfume on the nose too, with a lightness on the palate that I found quite pleasant. Drinking nicely now; I wouldn't be shy about opening fifths of this now.
Comes across a little strong with its acidity. A distinct note of American oak dill, as well as a good amount of earthiness too. The fruit and tannins are still quite primary, and I think this will get better with time in the bottle.
Plenty of American oak on the nose. A bit of baking spice on the nose with some pleasant earth tones in complement with dried fruit. On the palate, the fruit is a little more browning and overall I think that this wine was probably better a few years ago. Drink up.
This feels far more shut down than my last experience with this wine; in fact it felt like we were only drinking the potential greatness of this wine today. Taut and primary, with lots of black fruit and leathery tannins on the finish. Impressive intensity and weight, but nowhere near developing even nascent secondary characteristics. Opening a bottle of this right now seems like a waste.
Lote 007. A stunning wine -- one of my favourites tonight, no doubt. Incredibly perfumed and complex, with layers of fruit and earth, and a purity to the fruit that the older version didn't have. Fantastic silky texture with fine-grained tannins that are well integrated to the wine. Absolutely fantastic, compelling stuff.
The bottle says 1991 and Nº embtdor. 2342 on the bottom of the label. Judging from the RWC website, this is the 1968-1970-1972 blend. Fantastic nose showing lots of fruit, but it is clear to me that the fruit is getting a little long in the tooth here. A slight bit of brett, perhaps, causes this to seem a little less clean than the much more pristine 2011 release. Incredible complexity though, but again it's the bit of age causing this to taste dirtier than I would
Drier than I expected for a moelleux. Classically funky/wooly notes of chenin (perhaps too much so) complemented with some yellow orchard fruits. Pleasant acidity, but I wanted a little more sugar here.
1986 Marqués de Murrieta Rioja Castillo Ygay Gran Reserva Especial Blanco 98 Points
Spain, La Rioja, Rioja
Keeping with my previous experiences with this wine, a full 24 hours before service, I decided to pop the cork, pour off a fraction of a glass, and let the wine aerate. The initial pour is quite in line with my previous experiences with this wine. It's muted and doesn't show much expressiveness. A slight bit of tart fruit, but an intense waxiness on the nose and palate. Not particularly oaky. Plenty of acidity and liveliness for a wine of this age. This is so intense and concentrated it feels bitter. Oxidative winemaking, yes, but definitely not oxidized.
On the day of service, this wine had indeed amply tightened up and lost some of the waxy aromatics, though it certainly still retained a good amount of them. There's far more weight now, and the fruit shows more intensely. Almost comical levels of concentration. It's still a white wine best treated as a red, and went fantastic with a chicken paella.
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2009 R. López de Heredia Rioja Rosado Gran Reserva Viña Tondonia 93 Points
Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja
This drinks better than the other vintages that I've tasted; it has a nice roundness and more fruit than the other ones, making this more friendly and easier to enjoy. Slightly waxy and oxidative, and perhaps a bit more weighty than I would want for a simple rose -- this should be treated more like a straight-up dinner table wine.
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2020 Do Ferreiro Albariño Rías Baixas Cepas Vellas 93 Points
Spain, Galicia, Rías Baixas
A perennial winner in my book, especially for the price. The nose shows some saline notes but also plenty of waxiness. The palate is taut and concentrated, with layers of minerally concentration. This vintage shows a little more fruit than I would have expected too; I'm excited to have some of this in my cellar.
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2010 Bodega Numanthia Toro Termanthia 83 Points
Spain, Castilla y León, Toro
The fruit quality in this wine is magnificent. It's plummy, ripe, and somehow still crystalline in its purity and precision. Unfortunately, that is all marred by a horrible streak of oak -- the tannins here feel like they're all from the oak, and there's an unpleasant aftertaste as well. I can't help but think what an incredible bottle of wine this would be sans oak. A shame.
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1968 Giacomo Conterno Barolo 85 Points
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
This didn't seem close to the bottle of this at the white truffle dinner last year -- the nose was completely overrun by pyrazines and the palate never really got to fill out. Perhaps it was a matter of not getting enough aeration?
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1989 Gromis (Gaja) Barolo Conteisa Cerequio 93 Points
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
I didn't realize that at some point in the past that the Conteisa had the Cerequio name attached to it. Anyway, this was showing fabulously. Ripe fruit with relatively high extraction for nebbiolo, but showing only modest hints of maturity. A good dose of tar as well; one of the best "Gaja" Barolos I've had.
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1994 Artadi Rioja Grandes Añadas Reserva 90 Points
Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alavesa, Rioja
Pushing the ripeness envelope a little much for my taste, with a slight hint of brett and some oakiness as well. A mix of red and black fruit, and some grainy tannins still despite the age, but otherwise a somewhat silky texture to this wine.
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1985 Marqués de Murrieta Rioja Castillo Ygay Gran Reserva Especial Flawed
Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja
I got to this late, and by the time I did, the TCA had bloomed.
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1989 Marqués de Murrieta Rioja Castillo Ygay Gran Reserva Especial 93 Points
Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja
Incredibly young for a wine of 33 years. So much fruit and intensity, with moderate American oak notes. Fairly clean for Rioja, and perhaps in its youth it might have even been accused of being polished. But now, there's just a little earthiness from age complementing the fruit.
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2007 Marqués de Murrieta Rioja Castillo Ygay Gran Reserva Especial 90 Points
Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja
Very young. Needs lots of time to come together, but I could definitely see this evolving into something like the 1989. Lots of primary fruit and plenty of American oak.
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1975 Bodegas Riojanas Rioja Viña Albina Gran Reserva 90 Points
Spain, La Rioja, Rioja
I think others at the dinner liked this more than I did; this definitely seemed younger than 47 years though. Very red-fruited, light, and acid-driven, with a little barnyard Rioja funk. The midpalate does show a slight metallic tinniness that I found distracting.
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1997 La Rioja Alta Rioja Gran Reserva 904 93 Points
Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja
La Rioja Alta smells like La Rioja Alta. There's something distinct about their American oak that I just can't really place. In any case, this is just about getting into a very nice drinking window, showing leathery dark fruits and tannins that are resolving. Plenty of gas in the tank.
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2009 Clos Mogador Priorat 88 Points
Spain, Catalunya, Priorat
Not quite my style. This was very dark, but the fruit felt a little muddled (probably something to do with grenache getting too ripe). Sweet, and lacking a backbone to keep everything in place, and the there seems to be some slight decaying notes to the fruit (as opposed to development).
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1996 Domaine des Comtes Lafon Volnay 1er Cru Santenots-Du-Milieu 88 Points
France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru
Not a very convincing bottle. The fruit feels really backwards here, and only shows in the midpalate. Lots of gangly acidity, and lacking the perfume that I want in Volnay.
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2004 Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande 93 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac
From magnum. Textbook. Moderate green notes, clearly a Bordeaux from a cooler vintage in that those green tones are a little more prominent versus the fruit. Some perfume on the nose too, with a lightness on the palate that I found quite pleasant. Drinking nicely now; I wouldn't be shy about opening fifths of this now.
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2001 C.V.N.E. (Compañía Vinícola del Norte de España) Rioja Imperial Gran Reserva 90 Points
Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja
Comes across a little strong with its acidity. A distinct note of American oak dill, as well as a good amount of earthiness too. The fruit and tannins are still quite primary, and I think this will get better with time in the bottle.
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1985 Bodegas Vega-Sicilia Ribera del Duero Valbuena 5° 90 Points
Spain, Castilla y León, Ribera del Duero
Plenty of American oak on the nose. A bit of baking spice on the nose with some pleasant earth tones in complement with dried fruit. On the palate, the fruit is a little more browning and overall I think that this wine was probably better a few years ago. Drink up.
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2004 Bodegas Vega-Sicilia Ribera del Duero Único 93 Points
Spain, Castilla y León, Ribera del Duero
This feels far more shut down than my last experience with this wine; in fact it felt like we were only drinking the potential greatness of this wine today. Taut and primary, with lots of black fruit and leathery tannins on the finish. Impressive intensity and weight, but nowhere near developing even nascent secondary characteristics. Opening a bottle of this right now seems like a waste.
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NV Bodegas Vega-Sicilia Ribera del Duero Único Reserva Especial 1991, 1994, 1998 (2011 Release) 95 Points
Spain, Castilla y León, Ribera del Duero
Lote 007. A stunning wine -- one of my favourites tonight, no doubt. Incredibly perfumed and complex, with layers of fruit and earth, and a purity to the fruit that the older version didn't have. Fantastic silky texture with fine-grained tannins that are well integrated to the wine. Absolutely fantastic, compelling stuff.
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NV Bodegas Vega-Sicilia Ribera del Duero Único Reserva Especial 1968, 1970, 1972 (1991 Release) 93 Points
Spain, Castilla y León, Ribera del Duero
The bottle says 1991 and Nº embtdor. 2342 on the bottom of the label. Judging from the RWC website, this is the 1968-1970-1972 blend. Fantastic nose showing lots of fruit, but it is clear to me that the fruit is getting a little long in the tooth here. A slight bit of brett, perhaps, causes this to seem a little less clean than the much more pristine 2011 release. Incredible complexity though, but again it's the bit of age causing this to taste dirtier than I would
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1997 Domaine Huet Vouvray Moelleux 1ère Trie 20th Anniversary Release Clos du Bourg 93 Points
France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Vouvray
Drier than I expected for a moelleux. Classically funky/wooly notes of chenin (perhaps too much so) complemented with some yellow orchard fruits. Pleasant acidity, but I wanted a little more sugar here.
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