September 10, 2022 - Slightly oxidized bottle but still quite nice with acidity keeping the balance. Another bottle some TCA but fresher.
March 2, 2021 - In total agreement with other reviews here. this wine is monumental. A phantasmagorical drinking experience and one of the best wines in the world from 1942. Spanish rioja ( tempranillo) at its pure best. Other worldly. A low shoulder bottle and like the 47 Hunter River Claret expectations were low but i knew this wine had previous great reviews. And boy did it perform. Whilst i was enjoying the rarity and curiosity of the 47 , this came into the glass alongside it and burst out of it like a hot stripper from a birthday cake . it immediately denounced the efforts of the 47 next to it as a simpleton and new world loser and showed its old world heritage class including, i well suspect, sticking it right up the noses of any good 42 Bordeaux or Barolo. it oozed full bodied flavor, structure, sweet fruit, spices, i cant even describe it. and its not that important in writing down all the different wonderful facets of the wine , just find a bottle, pay anything for it and give yourself an oral orgasm..
certainly in the top 10 wines ive ever had. An amazing opportunity. thanks Marky
May 9, 2016 - Classic to the Bone (Restaurant Horcher - Madrid): An extraordinary bottle.
A bright ruby color, with complexity on the nose and a smooth, delicate and delicious acidity on the palate. Super fragrant yet savoury.
We did not want to finish the bottle ... eternal. Harmony. True devotion for a work done 74 years ago.
It is very difficult to find bottles like this, you really believe that?
Una botella extraordinaria.
De un brillante color rubí, con una inmensa complejidad en nariz y una acidez suave y delicada y deliciosa. Muy fragante y aún así sabrosa.
No queríamos terminar la botella...eterna. Con armonía. Auténtica devoción por el trabajo realizado hace 74 años.
Es muy difícil encontrar botellas como esta, ¿de verdad te crees eso?
November 13, 2015 - Another amazing (in the sense that it's well alive) bottle. Mind-boggling to think that this was bottled during WW2... Tea-leaves, herbs & mushrooms on the nose. With air, red-fruits, spice, leather & smoke emerged on the palate. Truly amazing how long these Riojas last!
January 24, 2015 - A great example of what older tempranillo can be. Complex nose of wine cellar mustiness, stewed red and dark fruits, dry earth, old leather, dried mushrooms, and sweet spices. Palate has slightly less to offer but is quite vibrant for a 70 year old wine. Bottle was in fantastic condition. No decant, consumed over three hours.
August 3, 2014 - Platinum Tasting - 7 Decades of Riojas (Tasted Blind) (Andre and Sabine's House, Mountain View, CA): My #3, Group's #7 (70 pts). Tasted blind
November 22, 2013 - Various Wines @ Salil's: This bottle was in almost unbelievable condition. Top of the shoulder fill level with an obviously older cork, but one that looks like it might be 40 rather than 70 years old. Good color, still holding a healthy ruby glow and a light garnet rim. This really took to air as it unfolded with multiple flavors and scents... none of fell into the caramel or dill spectrum, which older old-school Riojas can acquire. Earth, leather, dried red fruits and hints of brown spices. Velvety and long the palate. A wine that just puts a smile on your face with is weightless salvo of secondary and tertiary notes. Superb.
November 22, 2013 - A really great bottle; the fruit's still surprisingly robust and vibrant, and there's tremendous aromatic complexity and depth here. Layers of spicy, leathery, earthy and smoky flavours framing the core of cherry and red berried fruit, and very polished and graceful on the palate with the tannins fully integrated and bright acids keeping it quite fresh. With air it seems to get fresher and more lively, and remains absolutely compelling over a few hours. A real treat, thanks Marco.
July 24, 2013 - Opened blind at a wine club dinner and had high expectations for this - some laudatory tasting notes on CT from people who should know and this particular bottle has levels at the base of the neck.
Slightly barnyard-y sort of aromas upon opening, but they quickly dissipate.
A kaleidoscope of spices and cherry on the nose. So much energy. Red fruits, beautifully balanced acids and leather. A bordeaux type of Rioja. The group (including one budding MW and an experienced winemaker) guesses 1985 to 1990 Rioja or Bordeaux.
I've had a few 60+ years old rioja as of late and slowly coming to the conclusion that it ages better than bordeaux.
Spectacular wine and a real eye opener
March 9, 2013 - this high fill bottle did very well - still fresh, interesting black fruit aromas, a bit of mustard sees at the end, but in a good way