NOSE: expressive; tart red/purple berry mix; lightly woodsy, in that turning-tertiary sort of way; ripe flowers in potting soil; toasted celery seed; medium oak.
BODY: violet-garnet color of great depth, with bricking throughout; medium boded.
TASTE: clearly has some age, but not-at-all tired; medium+ to high acidity; earthy; juicy concentrated plum, but not prune y; very persistent finish; black currants; flavor profile seemed to brighten a bit with air, over three hours, eventually seeing the fruit veer towards black cherry. Little hints of funk and camphor. In its prime window right now, where I expect it will stay for quite some time. Excellent wine, which responded positively to the air it saw. Complex. Drink Now and over the next 10 years, at least, although I wouldn’t be surprised if it ultimately proves to have two or thee more decades of pleasurable drinking left in it. Glad to have more.
I entered 2036 into CT as the end of my personal drink window for this one, but I may amend that as I open my remaining three. I didn’t want to put an end date into the 2040s, as that would probably cause me to completely ignore it for another 7 - 10 years, and I’m not sure I shouldn’t be opening bottle number two within that time frame. Rioja remains underappreciated, and for that I am selfishly pleased. I scored this wine, very recently, at auction for less than $40 after vig.
Old Rioja never dies. Or seemingly so, so long as they’re built well.
Still have one 1922 Martinez Lacuesta in the queue. Last one I had about 10 years ago was still hanging in there. tbh, I have wondered if it was legit but I don’t really see why someone would go through the effort to fake and make it a ‘lowly’ Rioja. I prefer them a little younger than that but still have not experienced any other region that holds so well. Then again, I haven’t had the chance to hang with Monsieur Audouze.
I’ve also had the good fortune of drinking bottles of 50/60/70-year-old Rioja that were seemingly ageless. Even the GRs were selling for so little until what seems like a short while ago.
On 2001, I opened Prado Enea, 904, and Tondonia Reserva side by side just the other night. Fabulous already (all three, Muga the real standout), but mere babies.
How would you describe the style of that Prado Enea? I saw an auction lot recently with one of those and a LRA 904; I passed it over because I’m not familiar with the Prado Enea, and now I see you singing its praises …
Generally I would say it is a little rounder and a little less forbidding than some of its traditional-style peers can be. Seems to age just as well, though.
Your closing statement, however, both appeals to, and confuses, me. I have a strong preference for Bosconia over Tondonia but I consider Bosconia the more elegant/lighter of the two — sounds like you might have the opposite impression?
Brian - it’s not like your impression is wrong. Both wines come from specific vineyards - the Bosconia from El Bosque and Tondonia from its namesake. The Tondonia is about 75% Tempranillo, whereas the Bosconia usually has a little more Tempranillo, like 80%. Bosconia spends like a year less in wood and is often softer, although you’re talking about marginal differences as compared to many other wines. And if memory serves, Bosconia is a slightly older wine from a vineyard they owned before they bought the Tondonia vineyard, but I may be mistaken there and in any case, they’ve owned Tondonia since the time of WW1.
Interestingly, Bosconia used to include Pinot Noir as well. Back in the day it was called Rioja Cepa Borgoña. That’s why it has the Burgundy shaped bottle - great great grandpa liked Burgundy. They call the Bosconia reserva an assemblage or coupage wine, which means they may blend different varieties - the vineyard has several varieties planted, they may blend different barrels, and they sometimes blended a vintage with a bit from other vintages. AFAIK Tondonia never did that.
As far as Prado Enea goes - in some ways it’s even more “traditional” than the LdH wines, although the bodega is somewhat newer. The grapes come from several vineyards, not single vineyards, and that is the traditional production method in Rioja. Muga is interesting - they’re literally across the street from LdH in Haro. They have their own cooper and source their own logs from various forests. Their wine goes in a blend of various French and American oak barrels. But if you’re looking for a traditional, classic Rioja, the Prado Enea should be on your list. A more “modern” style would be the Torre Muga. I’ve posted this before but I once asked Isaac Muga about that wine and told him that I had some back vintages. He said oh no, drink it now, otherwise it will just be like a Gran Reserva.
Thanks, Greg! Nice to see you make an appearance here. Funny to see you mention that Bosconia used to include some Pinot Noir. I typically hate using the term, but Bosconia is on my short list of wines for which I feel it’s entirely appropriate — it strikes me as “Burgundian.”
Like Arv, I miss your more frequent participation here … hope you’re doing well!
