La Rioja Alta, 904 Gran Reserva, Rioja

Lovely, but with more acid than tannin. Surprising, and not clear if age will help or hurt. Still, would seem to have a long life left.

1995 vintage

Always a joy to return to this extraordinary producer and taste this fine Gran Reserva. Tempranillo blend with 10% Graciano, aged in new US oak for 4 years. Medium+ intensity aroma of dried cherries & strawberries, coconut, earth, tobacco, dried rose petals, old cellar which is quite irritating at first but thankfully with time it diminishes and converts to meaty notes. Medium body, perfumed coconut and spices, grippy fine grained medium+ tannins, old school, lean and elegant, high yet well …

1995 vintage

LRA @ 67 PM : Similar mid to off-full garnet. A little lighter on the nose with a hint of VA. More structured on the palate. A little more taut; focused perhaps against a slightly louche 01. Could do with a few more years if this bottle is representative. ***(*)

1995 vintage

Tasted blind. Nose was vanilla, wet mud and slightly lactic, which immediately sent me to La Rioja Alta (one of the very few wineries I can almost always nail blind). Lovely plum notes, hint of vegetable soup, really lovely and full bodied.

1995 vintage

Cherry, fig, leather, cigar box, fully resolved tannins, not designed to be revelatory but just a pleasure to drink with lamb chops. Score: 92. Relative to expectations: ++

1995 vintage

Tasted blind. Very earthy, notes of fruit compote, spice. In the mouth it’s textured and velvety, lots of acidity, dried figs and plums.

1995 vintage

Tasted blind. As it often happened I had no problem identifying the unique footprint of La Rioja Alta. Vanilla, warth and plum notes combine with a very chewy texture and high acidity. Good structure and length. Better slightly than its 1994 counterpart.

1995 vintage

Vibrant ruby with a rim that is starting to brick a bit. The nose starts out with a lovely tight core of sweet dark cherry aromas that unfortunately fade quite quickly. The cherry character sticks around, but it turns towards tart/sour, and less candied as the wine takes on air. Some lovely fresh raspberry aromas round out the fruit-driven profile, which compliments a plethora of leathery, earthy, and herbaceous (sage? mint?) smells. Age has lightened the body to a medium-minus. …

1995 vintage

Drank at 67 So drinkable

1995 vintage

Tasted double blind. Not being a big Rioja expert, we had a hard time to place this. In the end, we saw this as a right bank Bordeaux due to its bright red fruit and textural lightness. The complexity is high, but the delineation and overall balance are not perfect. A bit too rustic. 91/92 TN: Medium- expressive nose with tobacco, dark red ripe fruit, brighter red berries, some hints of caramel. Quite inviting. On the palate very intense with …

1996 vintage

Tasted blind. Overall a pretty aged flavor profile showing coca cola, sous-bois, earth, tobacco and leather with red berries and forest berries. Good structure and soft texture, but with just a tad too much acidity as tannin was entirely molten away. On the palate still nice fruit, with a minty touch. Came across more aged than it actually was soft texture. Drinks well, but was too rustic for my taste.

1996 vintage

Decantado y filtrado debido a la enorme cantidad de poso que contiene. Color picota de capa muy alta y el borde es sólo ligeramente atejado. El aroma es de nivel medio-alto, es una auténtica sinfonía compuesta de una multitud de elementos, cueros, en su variante de silla de montar, higos y melocotón confitados, tabaco rubio y de pipa, hojarasca, tierra mojada, especies orientales, balsámicos y muchos otros elementos que cuesta describir. En boca es un vino suave, redondo, aterciopelado, de …

1995 vintage

Simply beautiful! Everything in harmony, super smooth, so many subtle tertiary flavours in harmony, with a very long finish.

1995 vintage

Brilliant. Fully resolved tannins with good tertiary notes an enough acid to be an interesting food companion. I liked it a lot.

1995 vintage

Quite similar to my previous note, though the fruit has softened a bit and some of the intensity is subdued. There's a languid, louche feeling to this bottle, but it's delightfully moreish.

1995 vintage

Glass: Riedel Sommelier Bordeaux Popped and poured, drunk over two days. Clear, medium+, tawny color with some fine orange rim. Clean, medium+ intense, fully developed nose with lots of tobacco, menthol, leather, red fruit, fine oak and herbs. Deep and very complex! Dry, only 12,5% abv and a racy acidity, that makes the wine very fresh and lean. Fine, medium+ tannin. On the palate lots of red fruit, tobacco, cedar wood, leather, herbs, some dried rose petals and spices. Great …

1995 vintage

Perfectly mature and rounded classic rioja. Burgundian in style but with some telltale lactic notes and a fine touch of volatility.

1995 vintage

Wonderfully balanced old school rioja, gently fading sweet cherry, subtle spice and vanilla, a gorgeous nose and a very long finish.

1995 vintage

This was unfortunately corked but it was possible to discern a fine and lively wine with dark aromas and quite some acidity underneath.

1995 vintage

Sampler. Nose: leather, old books, some green notes. Similar on the palate, some black fruit, plum, tart. 89-92.

1995 vintage

Leather and light cherry.

1995 vintage

Sehr ätherisch, klar Rioja Alta Stil, kein Schimmer von Alterstönen, Kirschfrucht in allen Nuancen mischt sich mit Himbeere und Waldkräutern und Unterholz. Fantastischer Wein der sich Mühlos zu fortgeschittener Stunde zu zweit leeren ließ.

1995 vintage

Popped and poured. Garnet-ruby hue. Nose of cinnamon, plum pits, licorice, earth, damp cellar. Clear layers of vibrant plum and almost sour red cherry fruit cut with leather, earth, and hints of tobacco. Still-freshening acidity and smoothed tannin accompanied by gentle texture and a bit of oak. Feathery finish of coppery red fruit and dusty stone. Lovely with ribs.

1995 vintage

Dark red with medium edges. Ripe dill, melted butter, plum, leather and black cherry nose. For me the oak dominates but it is ok in this aged wine. Dry buttery plum and cherry flavours and a long caramel finish.

1995 vintage

classic old rioja style, very fine, concentrated and still tastful. certainly elegant. with a filet de boeuf, for example ! You could keep this yet longer, but it's ready now.

1995 vintage

off the list from Alta. still incredibly young and showing prominent oak. in decanter and some air, it starts to integrate and offers a lot of primary pleasure, but this is still a baby. Check in another 5 years, but more likely 10.

1995 vintage

A blend of Tempranillo (90%) and Graciano (10%) from a very acclaimed vintage. Fermented in large oak vats. Aged for 4 years (6/1996-7/2000) in American oak barrels that are on average 4 years old, but includes some new barrels as well. 12,6% alcohol, 5,86 g/l acidity and 0,95 g/l VA. Tasted blind. Translucent pale garnet color. Hugely expressive, complex and exuberant nose with voluptuous, intoxicating aromas of wizened dark fruits, sweet barnyard aromas, leather, some dill and beef consommé, a …

1995 vintage

Fresh, berry-red, and delicious with Thanksgiving dinner, but not as multidimensional as some old riojas. Maybe I should have waited another decade?

1996 vintage

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La Rioja Alta, 904 Gran Reserva, Rioja

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