2015 Altanza Rioja Gran Reserva

2015 Altanza Rioja Gran Reserva

with No Comment $30-$40Kevin VogtRiojaSpainTempranillo

ALTANZA

RIOJA 2015
GRAN RESERVA

2015 Altanza Rioja Gran Reserva
Located in Rioja Alta, the most historic zone in the region, Bodegas Altanza’s vineyards are terraced throughout river valleys primarily south of the Ebro River. This area is where many of Rioja’s oldest wineries are situated. Tempranillo is the principal variety and has been at the forefront of high-quality, age-worthy wines for more than 150 years.
 
Altanza’s state-of-the-art winery creates timeless wines with an authentic style and a touch of modernity using French and American oak in their aging regimen. The wine team aged the 2015 Rioja Grand Reserva for 27 months in oak before bottling. Rioja’s DOCa law for Grand Reserva then requires wine to spend a minimum of 36 months in the bottle before release, ensuring significant maturation and producing a wine that is stunning upon release and can age for many years.
 
ALTANZA
RIOJA 2015
GRAN RESERVA
 
Your Price: $36
 
 
“Beautiful and deep Gran Reserva. You can really taste classicism here. It has an elegant texture, well-integrated tannins, lots of complexity and notes of roasted fruits, sweet spices, cigar box, dried herbs and sweet oak. Fresh acidity enlivens the vivid, spicy and impressively long finish.”
96 Points
2015 Marques De La Concordia Reserva Rioja, Spain

2015 Marques De La Concordia Reserva Rioja, Spain

with No Comment $30 and underKevin VogtRiojaTempranilloUSA

MARQUES DE LA CONCORDIA

2015 RESERVA RIOJA 
RIOJA, SPAIN

2015 Marques De La Concordia Reserva Rioja, Spain
Concordia is a Spanish word for an agreement, trust, or harmony between people or groups, in which the will and common goals of those involved become a reality. Marques de la Concordia’s dream to make the finest wines in Rioja is the “Concordia” the winery strives to achieve, exceeding expectations at their value price.
 
Located in the northern Rioja Alta and Rioja Alavesa, their vineyards are influenced by a higher elevation and closer proximity to the cold Atlantic Ocean, creating sophisticated wines with fresh acidity, lower alcohol levels, and promising aging potential. The 2015 Reserva was fermented in stainless steel for optimal temperature control and then aged in French and American barriques for 24 months, plus another year in bottle, producing a silky smooth, complex wine upon release.
 
MARQUES DE LA CONCORDIA
2015 RESERVA RIOJA 
RIOJA, SPAIN
 
Your Price: $24
 
 
Marques de la Concordia 2015
Reserva, Rioja, Spain
 
has been awarded a 
 
Gold Medal & 
95 Points
 
“The 2015 Marqués de la Concordia Reserva opens with a nose of incense, white pepper, and leather, followed by fruity notes of black raspberries, plums, wild strawberries, and a hint of milk chocolate. The palate is round but balanced by fresh acidity, smooth tannins, and flavors of black cherry, vanilla bean, and sweet spices. This wine is a classic, old-world style charmer that is enjoyable to drink now but has the structure to age for another decade.”
92 Points
2012 Muga Seleccion Especial Reserva Rioja

2012 Muga Selección Especial Rioja Reserva

with No Comment $30-$40HaroKevin VogtProprietary RedSpain

MUGA

2012 Muga Seleccion Especial Reserva Rioja

2012 RIOJA RESERVA
SELECCIÓN ESPECIAL

 
When I tasted Muga’s 2012 Selección Especial, the first three adjectives that came to mind were appealing, engaging and irresistible.  It’s been quite a while since I’ve tasted a Rioja that I love this much.  It immediately dazzles your palate with seductive black fruits, intriguing complexity, and focused, penetrating flavors that simply make you want to keep sipping.  Muga is one of Rioja’s most idolized producers and they have the scores to back it up.  At under forty per bottle the 2012 Selección Especial has already earned a monster 95 point score, and I wouldn’t hesitate to secure yours.  
 
Muga’s Selección Especial comes from a high elevation vineyard located in the Rioja Alta region of Haro.  The blend is dominated by 70% Tempranillo, enhanced with other indigenous varietals.  The wine spends 26 months in oak and now with a few years in the bottle the 2012 is firing on all cylinders… Don’t miss it…
 
MUGA
2012 RIOJA RESERVA
SELECCIÓN ESPECIAL
Retails at:  $50.00/btl
 
Your Price: $39.99/btl
YOU SAVE 20%
 
From James Suckling: “A linear and super-fine wine with black cherry and berry character and hints of flowers. Full body yet very tight and closed. Beautiful texture.” 95 Points
 
 
Customers who enjoy Muga Selección Especial Reserva Rioja  may also enjoy these two fantastic wines…
2012 Vik Milla Calla Proprietary Red 2015 Quinta Do Vallado Reserva Douro
VIK
2012 MILLA CALA
PROPRIETARY RED
MILLAHUE VALLEY, CHILE
 
Your Price: $39.99/btl 

Click to Order

 
From The Wine Spectator: “Rich and refined, delivering unctuous dark fruit and spice flavors that offer a creamy svelteness. Slate and mineral accents linger on the complex finish, with dark chocolate and olive notes. Cabernet Sauvignon, Carmenère, Cabernet Franc, Syrah and Merlot. Drink now through 2022…”  94 Points
QUINTA DO VALLADO
2015 RESERVA 
DOURO, PORTUGAL
Retails at: $65.00/btl
 
Your Price: $54.99/btl 

Click to Order

 
From Robert Parker’s The Wine Advocate: “The 2015 Reserva is a field blend of very old vines (100+ years old)… Reasonably concentrated for the producer’s subregion and the vintage, this actually has fleshed out since I last saw it. Yet it retains that graceful, textured feel, the freshness and the fine fruit. I suspect the wine will show even more elegance as it continues to age… This is going to be a hard-to-resist wine when it hits the table at dinner.”  93 Points