My wife and I had two other couples over for dinner. We had takeout food (vegetarian) from the local Turkish restaurant. I decided to match it with Rioja’s. All the wines were served non-blind and consecutively. The Allende was decanted; the others were popped and poured.
2001 Allende Rioja
$27 Ohio. 13.5% Alc. Decanted 2 hours. Ruby/purple in the glass. The nose shows cherries, tart cherries and some oak. I was expecting more oak, but this seemed in balance. Full bodied. On the palate, there is plenty of cherry fruit. Medium tannins. Some oak feel to it but not over burdened. Nice finish. This was a nice wine and contrary to some reports the fruit was vibrant and the wine balanced. If there is a complaint, it is that this wine could have come from anywhere in the world. While it speaks of Tempranillo (at least non-blind), nothing to say Rioja here. Is that a fault? I am not sure, but I enjoyed the wine. 50+4+12+17+7=90
1995 Chivite Coleccion 125 Reserva
13% Alc. Ruby in color, mostly clear and bright. The nose had a huge amount of barnyard on opening, but mostly blew off (and quickly). It was left with a lovely nose of cherries, vanilla, dill and barnyard. Medium bodied. On the palate, this has a silky texture. Cherries and layers of wet leaves, earth and fruit. Some vanilla. Nice finish. This wine has a nice complexity and performed best with the food. Seems to be peaking but no hurry either. Lovely traditional Rioja wine. 50+4+13+18+7=92
2004 Lan Rioja Crianza
$15 Ohio. 13% Alc. Ruby/purple in color. The nose is very nice with cherries, cherry milk shake, some vanilla and slight dill notes. Full bodied. Juicy texture. On the palate, this has cherry fruit but is monolithic. Seems a bit disjointed and has some harsh oak tannins on the finish. A nice wine for the money, but not in the league of the other two bottles, of course it was ½ the price. Still, it enjoys the ripeness and fullness of the vintage. 50+4+12+16+5=87