Riojathon

London SW11
Tasted Thursday, November 16, 2023 by king-bing with 109 views

Introduction

Eaten with super home made Iberian cuisine. Salami, roast pork with roast potatoes, hen-of-the-woods, and a fab Walnut cake to finish.

I've added some general thoughts on the wines at the end.

Flight 1 (1 Note)

Flight 2 (2 Notes)

  • 2003 R. López de Heredia Rioja Blanco Viña Gravonia

    Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja

    Slightly worried as it's a European 2003. Pretty gold in the glass, but not so deep. An utterly satisfying first sniff. This is going to be good. And it is. Notes of honeysuckle and nuts, with a really tangy and exciting finish. It remains compact and focussed. No blowsiness here. A triumph but especially in the context of 2003.

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  • 2006 R. López de Heredia Rioja Blanco Viña Gravonia

    Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja

    Tasted alongside the 2003, this was similar in many ways but rather a shadow of it's stablemate. Paler colour but a bit wan on the palate too. Less weight, austere even. Hard to love. Nothing technically wrong but less good than a previous bottle and certainly less good than the 2003.

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Flight 3 (2 Notes)

  • 1970 Bodegas Riojanas Rioja Monte Real Gran Reserva

    Spain, La Rioja, Rioja

    Served blind (though knew is was a Rioja). Fairly mature colour but not so much. On the nose it's a bit spiky to start but quickly settles. Some cordite, leather orange peel,, blackcurrant (someone says) and perhaps fruit pastilles. It's quite narrow but focussed. It's not at all tired and perhaps even freshens up for a while with a little more fruit and shoe polish. Not a very long finish which leads me to guess a mid-ranking producer. And knowing we all always under-guess for age, I eventually plump for 1970 (as a strong year) and Bilbainas as the producer. Which turms out to be ridiculously close! A super wine though.

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  • 1991 C.V.N.E. (Compañía Vinícola del Norte de España) Rioja Imperial Reserva

    Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja

    Served alongside a blind wine. Notable darker, richer. Some plumminess, deep raspberry. This is a proper wine. some depth coming through, with dried herbs on the nose. Another tangy and fresh finish with more length. Another ravishing wine and a lovely pair.

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Flight 4 (3 Notes)

  • 2001 Faustino Rioja I Gran Reserva

    Spain, La Rioja, Rioja

    Blind (though knew it a 2001 Rioja), and served as one of a trio flight. Notably darker colour, more brooding nose. n the palate this is quite meaty; some orange peel notes. More modern. V likeable though. Contino? Not really the depth I'd associate with that wine. Revealed as Faustino 1. Well, it was really rather good. And a bargain! Chapeau to our host.

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  • 2001 La Rioja Alta Rioja Gran Reserva 904

    Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja

    Served in a flight of three 2001s. Very "Royal Box" says girlfriend. Yes, plush, velvety and expensive. Lots of vanilla, super red-fruited core. Later the nose really soars with it's perfume of vanilla and violets then some allspice. But is it rather out of balance? It seems very young and even after a couple of hours is very vanilla dominant. Perhaps not the best bottle? I did enjoy it in a lot of ways, but it came across a bit one-trick pony.

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  • 2001 R. López de Heredia Rioja Reserva Viña Tondonia

    Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja

    Tasted in a flight of three 2001s. A slow and gentle starter this one. Less flashy than the other two, but as time ticks by, this keeps moving forward. Pale colour but a darker fruit profile. Some meatiness, leather and old wood. An a super fresh and long finish. Classy but still young.

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Flight 5 (2 Notes)

  • 2007 R. López de Heredia Rioja Reserva Viña Bosconia

    Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja

    Rather anonymous to start. Almost generic Rioja. Again air and time work their magic. A lovely red-fruited core. Still almost tannic, though someone suggests that may be the acidity. Certainly texture here. Later some black tea notes (which I am a sucker for). A very decent Rioja but I think more time, though not loads: 5 years?

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  • 2005 La Rioja Alta Rioja Viña Ardanza Reserva

    Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja

    Tasted in a pair. Dark colour, quite blue fruited nose. Young, fruity and a bit simple. Later this is unfurling and gaining complexity. Another fresh finish. I'd give this 5 years but it's just about in it's drinking window now, with some air.

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Flight 6 (1 Note)

Closing

Chapeau to our host. Some great wines. All were very enjoyable wines in their own right. The qualitative gap from the top to the lowest wines was not that big, though the big names were mostly ahead.

What really came through was firstly the longevity of these wines. The 1991 and especially 1970 were not good-for-old wines. They were super wines and in great shape. Secondly, these were gourmand wines: all shared a terrific freshness in their finish that kept them interesting and quenched the thirst. Nothing overdone and plodding here.
Thirdly, these wines remain great value but especially when younger.

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