Wine & Spirits - December 2012 - (Page 71)

YEAR’S BEST RIOJA Our blind panels tasted 240 new-release Rioja wines over the past 12 months. Joshua Greene, our critic for the wines of Rioja, rated 28 as exceptional (90+) and 27 as Best Buys. Find a complete list of wines tasted and all reviews at wineandspiritsmagazine.com. RIOJA W H I T E 185430 | R. López de Heredia $ 1991 Rioja Gran Reserva Viña Tondonia There was a time when some of the greatest wines of Rioja were white, aged to levels of complexity that would drive even the most dour Spanish royal to drink. Today, the only winery to maintain such treasures in current release is R. López de Heredia. Now entering its third decade, this wine is insanely rich, with a heady fragrance that blends peach skin, litchi, kumquat and leather. The texture is round and supple, the oak-aged fruit character lasting with delicacy and persistence. Chris Hallowell, who tastes spirits for W&S, commented on how the ﬁnish of the wine parallels the experience of a Cognac. A rarity within reach. Think Global, Santa Barbara, CA 185426 a 16-year-old white wine, its lush pear, quince and lemon ﬂavors focused by brisk acidity. Wood tannins come up in the end, placing the wine with meaty shellﬁsh, like grilled langoustines or lobster. Think Global, Santa Barbara, CA 185306 | R. López de Heredia $ | Dinastia Vivanco $ 2011 Rioja Blanco Vivanco Viura–Malvasia–Tempranillo (Best Buy) Floral notes of lemon blossom add to the intriguing mix of aromas in this fresh white blend. The fruit has an earthy persistence and the wine should develop more complexity over the next year in bottle. Opici Wines, Glen Rock, NJ 184505 | Marqués de Cáceres $ 2005 Rioja Crianza Viña Cubillo This comes from the López de Heredia family’s Cubillas vineyard, 59 acres of vines averaging 40 years of age, two-thirds of which are tempranillo, the balance planted to garnacha, mazuelo and graciano. They designate this vineyard’s wine as a Crianza, though it has the grandeur and elegance that takes it to a higher level. The lush fruit has scents of tart raspberries and sweet cherry compote, while a prickle of spice keeps it lean and classical in structure. That spiciness brings chorizo to mind, with which this would be delicious. Think Global, Santa Barbara, CA 185433 | R. López de Heredia $ 2003 Rioja Crianza Viña Gravonia A mild and creamy 2003, this shows the heat of the vintage in a gentle peppery burn. There are cool cellar tones to keep it balanced, the wine’s ﬂavors gaining freshness, building toward lemon custard and chamomile scents as it opens with air. Think Global, Santa Barbara, CA 184660 2011 Rioja Blanco (Best Buy) This is viura fermented in stainless steel, retaining a fresh sting of acidity tightening around ﬂavors of grilled pineapple. The wine has a touch of bitterness that will play well oﬀ any roast ﬁsh. Vineyard Brands, Birmingham, AL | R. López de Heredia $ RIOJA RED 184958 | Cune $ | Marqués de Cáceres $ 2009 Rioja Antea (Best Buy) Enriched by aging in new French oak, this blend of viura and malvasia reached ﬁne ripeness in 2009, melding the vanilla cream of its oak inﬂuence with substantial depth of fruit. There’s purity to the nectarine and pineapple ﬂavors, lasting on spice. Vineyard Brands, Birmingham, AL 184963 | Cune $ 2011 Rioja Monopole (Best Buy) Here’s the kind of wine that comes alive with tapas, balanced between the lush texture of peachy fruit and the tangy spice of cool acidity. There’s no oak to get in the way, just gentle, simple, ﬁnely balanced ﬂavors in a wine that’s targeted at food. Europvin USA, Van Nuys, CA 185427 | R. López de Heredia $ 1996 Rioja Reserva Viña Tondonia This holds a lot of verve and fresh, juicy ﬂavor for 2001 Rioja Gran Reserva Imperial Recently, Patrick Mata and Alberto Orte of Peninsula Wines held a tasting of Riojas they’d purchased at auction in Spain. The wines had been held in the cold cellar of Los Tamarises, the Lazcano family’s restaurant in Getxo, north of Bilbao; the stash included a number of Cune Imperial wines from the 1950s and ’60s, which turned out to be the stars of the tasting. They are selling those wines to restaurants here in the US, providing a rare opportunity to taste grand old Rioja. If you can’t ﬁnd (or aﬀord) one of those bottles, here’s the next best thing: A vintage of Imperial that will provide exceptional drinking for the next forty years. No exaggeration. This is the stuﬀ. It has the cool presence of Villalba fruit, from the mountains lining the western reaches of Rioja Alta, and a deep, plump currant and fraise de bois ﬂavor with a briskness to balance its meaty, mineral-driven tannins. A 2001 destined to become a coveted classic. Europvin USA, Van Nuys, CA 185428 2001 Rioja Reserva Viña Tondonia Elegance and understatement are the classic hallmarks of ﬁne Rioja, sustained in this estate-grown red from an exceptional vintage. The wine’s complexity begins in the light cranberry essence of its aroma, which deepens to cherries and adds zesty notes of orange peel as the ﬂavors build in richness. Sleek and mature, this is the ultimate red for rack of lamb. Think Global, Santa Barbara, CA 178018 | Roda $ 2009 Rioja Sela Produced from 15- to 30year-old bush vines, this blend of tempranillo with graciano (11 percent) is Roda’s more accessible oﬀering. And yet this 2009 is concentrated, deep and brooding, a huge Rioja focused along an arc of ﬂavor, a trajectory that reveals scents of cranberries, roses, mushrooms and violets. Give it an hour in a decanter while you grill up lamb chops. Kobrand, Purchase, NY 184293 | Castillo Labastida $ 2004 Rioja Reserva Manuel Quintano A great vintage in Alavesa produced this concentrated wine layered with spices and veiled in smoke. Tart cherry fruit saturates its juicy core, ﬁnely integrated with the tannins, yielding a meaty, savory ﬁnish that lasts. Decant it for slow-cooked lamb shoulder. Winebow, NY W I N E & S P I R I T S D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 2 71 http://www.wineandspiritsmagazine.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Wine & Spirits - December 2012

Wine & Spirits - December 2012
Editor's Note
Contents
Fined & Filtered
Happenings
Books
Spirits
The Light in Douro
Sushi & German Riesling
Tokaji Myths
Napa vs Bordeaux: A Seismic Shift
A Tale of Two Vintages
Dinner with Barolo
Extreme Values
Tastings Overview
Champagne
US Cabernet Sauvignon
Barolo & Barbaresco
Rioja
German Riesling
Alsace
American New Releases
International New Releases
Faces at the W&S Top 100

Wine & Spirits - December 2012