2001 Bodegas Ramon De Ayala Lete e Hijos Tempranillo Rioja Vina Santurnia Reserva

Community Tasting Notes (1) Avg Score: 93 points

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  11/4/2020 - Wayne Hansen Likes this wine: 93 Points

  Excellent fill; needed the AhSo to get the cork out – some disintegration of the cork leaving pieces which were removed from the wine with a fine sieve.
  Color is a medium deep amber-tinged garnet showing significant age; wine is mostly Tempranillo I think.
  
  Aroma is deep and somewhat complex with oak-accented berry notes with considerable soil and crushed rock undertones; there is quite a smoky and briary component as well that adds complexity as well as flavor interest; fruit has faded into interesting tertiary notes (noted above) that provide lots of intriguing low notes; there is a definite sense of age to this aroma that is pleasing and intriguing. There are some floral notes of dried, crushed flowers and autumn leaves that blend well with the smokiness of this wine; so pleasing!
  
  Flavor is rich, deep and complex again with smoky oak, briar and soil notes but also lifted by tertiary-influenced fruit that one senses more in mouth feel rather than in flavor; this still has a “sweet”, voluptuous note in the mouth – not sugary sweet but instead a sweetness of soul; quite intriguing! This feels so silky in the mouth and has a finish that is somewhat tannic but leaves a “sweet” impression on a flavor memory that is of medium length. This is not an overly acidic wine, but it DOES have a sort of juiciness that I am really enjoying. I suspect this is a very classically styled Rioja.
  
  This is a wine for roast pork … a different pairing than one provided by a nice Burgundy, but equally pleasing with the smokiness and richness of the wine pairing seamlessly with the meat. Might be OK with a steak, but I’d prefer the pork. In fact this WAS excellent with pork sausage – but surprisingly the sausage was mixed into a fresh tomato, garlic and basil sauce poured over fresh linguine. It was a delicious combination with the basil in the sauce bringing out a similar herbal note in the wine. It was almost an exact echo of flavors!

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