Tasting Notes
The top Riojas of La Rioja Alta at their best are outstandingly good and phenomenal to drink with good maturity. They can age for decades. "The 2010 Gran Reserva 890 is a blend of 95% Tempranillo, 3% Graciano and 2% Mazuelo from Rioja Alta. Aged for six years in American oak, this light garnet wine with a brick sheen unfolds a bouquet of leather and cigar box, along with caramel, licorice, dried fruits and a faint balsamic note. On the palate, it is dry and silky, with a nimble and juicy flow that soars with a light, flavorful, nervously lasting note. A classically styled Rioja in the midst of its evolution, its intricate bouquet offers a glimpse into its promising future over the next decade” - 96 Pts Joaquín Hidalgo (Vinous)
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"They were eager to show me their 2010 Gran Reserva 890, their flagship wine from one of the most heralded vintages of recent times, the next vintage of this wine since 2005. It's 95% Tempranillo, 3% Graciano and 2% Mazuelo that fermented destemmed and crushed with indigenous yeasts in stainless steel vats for 18 days, the Tempranillo and Mazuelo together and the Graciano separately. After letting the wine settle for the winter, they selected the lots that would age for six years in used American oak barrels with 10 manual rackings. The wine epitomizes the classical style of Rioja Alta with long aging in barrel, developed and tertiary wines with a silky palate and a complex and decadent nose of forest floor, truffles, cigar ash and cedar wood. They need a very special selection of vineyards at higher altitude that take longer to ripen, and they don't do it fully every year. If they don't, the grapes go to Ardanza, but in 2010, the days were warm and the nights very cold and the grapes ripened thoroughly and could stand the long time in barrel without being oaky. They have stopped the last rackings to keep a little more freshness, and the wine feels phenomenal. This has to be one of the finest vintages for this wine. It's drinkable now but should also age for a very long time; it's intense, complex and elegant. As for what's currently released, I loved the 2010 Gran Reserva 890, a wine that to me epitomizes their style of reds with a long aging in barrel and in bottle." - 97 Pts Luis Gutierrez (Wine Advocate)