1998 Bodegas Riojanas Rioja Monte Real Gran Reserva Edición Limitada

Community Tasting Notes (7) Avg Score: 92.3 points

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  12/16/2023 - SirFred Likes this wine: 91 Points

  Dark garnet color. Dark red berries and cherry on the nose, with charred oak and hints of coconut and vanilla, plus a whiff of old leather. High acidity on the palate with dark fruits, tobacco, and some bitterness that lingers on the aftertaste. I’ve drank at least a half dozen of these this year, and have noted some bottle variation. Some are more rustic, and some more plush. Some have been more oaky than others. This one has been more rustic, and darker on the fruit spectrum. I've enjoyed the plusher versions better, and would score them higher. Don’t think there is any rush to drink these, though its hard to predict how these will further age, especially with the variation, but they have all been pleasant at a minimum, and enjoyable at best. A relatively good value for a 25-year-old wine at fifty bucks with many years of life remaining. Complements a Jamon Serrano and paella nicely.

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  11/29/2023 - dsamuel Likes this wine: 92 Points

  Double Blind tasting
  Medium ruby color with mild bricking - beautiful
  Medium plus aromas of red fruit/plum with balsamic/ soy sauce notes and well integrated oak spices/ vanilla/ dill
  Medium bodied with palate of red fruit/ sweet and sour sauce and soy with cured tobacco
  Medium plus acidity and medium alcohol with medium plus finely integrated tannins
  Medium length - very well balanced wine
  I guessed 2013 Rioja and was shocked at how old this was! - Still fresh and lively though not sure any more aging would help
  Not reaching the complexity and beauty of LdH very good nonetheless

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  11/26/2023 - S.Wayne Likes this wine: 92 Points

  Medium ruby/garnet with bricking
  Aromatics medium +. New oak of coconut, vanilla and cocoa. Later some red plum
  Palate has a medium body. Acid medium +. Tannins medium +, medium grained and integrated. Alcohol medium. Soy sauce, sweet and sour, red cherries.
  Finish has a medium + length. Balanced
  Overall, despite the age still has a great structure, fruit, sweet/sour and new oak that are all in harmony and typical of a well made Rioja. Label states aged at the winery and released 2022, which accounts for the still fresh nature. Rare Wine Company purchase.
  While this could be aged further, I feel it is drinking well now and can't see any benefit to more time in your cellar.

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  10/27/2022 - NoahCap wrote:

  Provenance is as good as it gets- Library Release in 2021, stored at 55F in a Eurocave since I purchased it from the Rare Wine Company 6 months ago. The wine is good, but on the backslope, at least to my palate. And I like old wine.
  
  Pale translucent ruby with some bricking. First impression on the nose is that it smells like red wine that is a bit too old for its own good. It's tough to describe that particular smell if you haven't experienced it before, but kind of a mix of soy sauce, old dirty leather, a little sweaty, mushrooms. There are some nice cherries, raspberries, tobacco, even a touch of cured black olives on the nose as well.
  
  In the mouth, the acidity and body are medium, tannins are almost completely gone. To me, it tastes sort of like an old Burgundy, maybe one that is a little too old, but with the addition of some tobacco flavors that are not usual with Burgundy. The age seems to have taken away some regional typicity. The finish is medium in length.
  
  Overall, it is pleasant enough, let's say a B+, but this bottle would have suited me better 5 years ago. A half bottle in the fridge degraded a little on day 2, though not as much as I expected actually. If you have any of these, I recommend drinking them soon. They are nice now, but headed downhill. At least my bottle.

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  8/28/2022 - WojteG Likes this wine: 95 Points

  Drinking old wines is a risky business. Please do not confuse buying young wines and aging them in your cellars. I bought this wine a month ago and I don't know what history it has, whether it was properly stored, whether it traveled a lot from one owner to another.
  First thing first - a complete surprise that this wine is still closer to red than to brick color!
  Second - if you have it, drink it at 18°C, no less! And now let's go to the core. Smell - 500 pounds gorilla with black currant, mushroom, a musty basement, tabacco (o yes) and ... nothing else, but believe me it's enough.
  Taste - probably you won't believe me but tannins and acidity are still here, but in complete harmony with the taste. Mellow taste to be precise. Black currant, mushrooms, juicy red cherry (o yes!), sweet, short finish with plum (?), no spice, but soft tannins.
  Third glass of drinking - smell: ten thousand pounds of tabacco and taste is softer and softer
  Unbelievable!
  Fourth and last glass - less acidity, more sweetness ( and what's more I have no idea how to describe it).
  Tannins are on the same lavel.
  How many more years this average, not too well known wine can last?
  I don't know but I think, tomorrow I will order at least two more bottles just to
  impress and make jealous my friends 😉

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