TN: 2009 Bodegas Manzanos 'Siglo' Gran Reserva [Rioja]

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2009 Bodegas Manzanos ‘Siglo’ Gran Reserva [Rioja] 13.5% abv, closed under DIAM5 which I had not realized was getting traction in Spain. Color/edges are mostly garnet. Medium bodied, yet some viscous legs. Bouquet of leather armchair, iodine. Palate is smooth, not much acid nor tannin, but the fruit is more medium than rich. Despite the age, no sediment - perhaps it was filtered heavily. The label / bottle looks much more like ‘Siglo’ is the way its marketed, and even in my Penin Guide’s the estate is noted as some part of the AGE / Pernod Ricard empire. I have not really seen it around much, and this is my first experience with any vintage. It’s tasty, traditional, but nothing memorable. I get the feeling from the website, and Penin, that this is basically the equivalent of a Napa mass producer like Sterling or something like that, and that it appears exotic in a foreign land where it’s seen infrequently. Or maybe it was a brand that is now just being bottled up by a big producer; for better or worse - some of the long standing La Rioja estates are really more about their labels than specific sites (a la Burgundy). It seems like very old vintages of Siglo have a different estate/producer linked to them. I would buy various examples again, as it is true to type, and the price is fair enough and I want to support diversity in Riojanes that make it across the pond. In my ledger it gets a B which is a couple notches below the trade journals.