Balbas, Ribera del Duero, Reserva

Unfamiliar with this wine and producer, purchased for $20, almost 20 years in the bottle, we didn't know what to expect.We opened this for a Spanish wine tasting directly out of the cellar.The cork was in good condition and easily removed. The color was opaque purple and was without noticeable sediment. Black cherry with some cedar on the nose; smooth on the palate, with tart red plum, blackberry,and spice notes; cassis and spice on the finish. We were pleased and …

2001 vintage

Excellent.

2006 vintage

Nice, Aromatic, typical fruit notes. Nothing overly interesting about this, enjoyable though

2006 vintage

Very dark red color with 7mm transitional margin. PNP, split bottle over 2 hours. This is so ready to go now, very silky and soft. Exotic tobacco is driving the nose, dense Asian spices, cassis and blackberry, and subtle anise. The palate is full bodied, great purity to the fruit, cassis, blackberries, fine tobacco, underbrush, awesome spices, and something intriguing that is reminescent of drying paint. This does improve over an hour modestly and shows a lovely damp proest floor …

2001 vintage

Drank pleasantly right away, but did open up a bit more after 30-45 minutes. Smokey notes on the finish initially, which dissipated as the wine breathed and softened. Nice for a long-aged wine. But also not any particular depth or distinct character. Paired well with mettwurst, and Spanish cheeses, as would be expected.

2001 vintage

Typical Ribera del Duero Dried black fruits, spices (cloves and nutmeg). Ripe tannins, not green astringent tannins like those in Bordeaux. Will improve with further ageing in the bottle

2006 vintage

Started out with what every wine drinker hopes for - a flawless cork that is clean and supple. Opaque black to the edge with an inch pour. Inviting aromas of black cherry and a bouquet of red roses, Enters the mouth very smooth, deliciously fruity, and ample rounded acidity and tannin. The swallow glides down the throat. Magnificently enjoyable now or years later. So glad we own 2 magnums from one of the greatest vintages that Spain has seen. Tasting …

2001 vintage

Nice drinking wine with red meat. Ours was a little too cold when opened, but Rioja is supposed to be drunk a bit colder. Found it to be somewhat basic, still has somewhat firm tannins. Still tastes a bit young. The wine looks garnet colored. The legs are medium. There is no sediment in the bottle. It smells like cherry and plum. It tastes like mineral, blackberry, stoniness and alcohol/hot. The body is medium/full. The wine has leathery texture. The …

2010 vintage

Purple with pink rims...does not look like a 2006 vintage. Focused dark berry fruit with spicy, sturdy tannins; long woodsy finish. 4/5

2006 vintage

Not sure if it was bottle variation or a recent move or being paired with things that didn't quite suit the wine, but this one felt a little flat in terms of being dry and without much depth. not lifeless, just maybe too closed at the moment. Flavors of coffee and dirt, with darker almost musty red fruit.

2001 vintage

Very nice wine. Black raspberry and herbs. Excellent QPR, but I think this one is past the apex. Still enough fruit to last a few more years, though.

2001 vintage

Even better than my last bottle. At 15 yrs this is in beautiful shape, fully integrated with excellent fruit.

2001 vintage

Le bois est encore bien présent. Autrement, belle structure et longueur. A encore bien des annees devant lui.

2001 vintage

Showing a bit of age, might be slightly pas prime but still a nice drink.

2001 vintage

What a magnificent time machine this 15 year old wine is, allowing us to experience why the 2001 vintage was one of the greatest in Spain. I still vividly remember seeing tasters of a $12 2001 Crianza ordering cases as soon as they tasted it, that blew away Reservas in subsequent vintages. This Reserva is in spectacular shape, black to the edge with bright acidity and tannins strong enough to be drying and to handle any fatty meat. Very smooth …

2001 vintage

Consistent with previous bottles. Opaque purple in color, this wine shows intense aromas of cedar, espresso, leather and tobacco leaf. The mouth feel is full-bodied with added elements of toffee and vanilla. Purchased recently for $20US, this bottle was in a very good place. I was concerned with this wine based on the reviews of others as well as my own experience with 2 previous bottles. My bottles appear to be freshly labelled and the cork certainly wasn't 14 years …

2001 vintage

QPR night continued. A solid wine for $20. Still has good fruit, so I think has time.

2001 vintage

Dark shade of red somewhere between ruby and garnet. Ready to drink with only a moment or two to collect itself after popping it open. Starts off with mainly barrel notes, vanilla, cocoa, and espresso. Dark berries intermingle with tobacco smoke as the wine opens up in decanter. Tannins are fine-grained and well-integrated, in balance with moderate acidity and alcohol. It has aged beautifully thus far and very well could develop more savoury character with a little more bottle time.

2001 vintage

Commence à montré des signes d'évolution. Le bois encore présent se fait discret. Belle palette aromatique d'une belle complexité. RQP exceptionnel.

2001 vintage

Very dark garnet red color. PNP, drank 2+ glasses over 2.5 hours. This was very good out of the gate and became even more complex and interesting over the first hour. Somewhat high toned on the nose, dark chocolate and tobacco hit you first, then the dark berries come in with dark succulent raspberry, cherry, some herbal elements and a very nice savory note. The palate is medium plus bodied, layered dark red fruit, high toned, framboise, tobacco, savory, some …

2001 vintage

Deep garnet and nice initial nose. Dark cherries, tobacco, and leather. The fruit still stands up, despite its age. Tremendous value! (so I may have given it an extra point.)

2001 vintage

Still has plenty of life, even though the reviews say drink through 2015. Needed aeration, and then still developed and balanced for another two hours in the glass. Definitely give it lots of time to come around.

2001 vintage

Very dark red color, 2mm meniscus. PNP, drank 1+ glass over 45 minutes, then again on day 2. Initially this showed dark chocolate, very herbal, dark red fruit, the palate was medium full bodied, firm tannins, green pepper, herbal. Not bad initially, but not really a style I care for...then on day 2 this was a different wine. While there was still some herbal character on the nose and palate, it was blaanced well by raspberry fruit, dark cherries, wood …

2001 vintage

Rich feel, dry finish

2001 vintage

Intense ruby color, was hoping to see a little more garnet. Slightly reductive balsamic notes at first opened into a wine that was more expressive of cedar, tobacco, some leather and dried red berries. Well-rounded tannic structure, very approachable and well-integrated.

2001 vintage

Opaque purple in color, this wine shows intense aromas of cedar, espresso, leather and tobacco leaf. The mouth feel is full-bodied with added elements of toffee and vanilla. Purchased recently for $20US, this bottle was in a very good place. I was concerned with this wine based on the reviews of others as well as my own experience with 2 previous bottles. My bottles appear to be freshly labelled and the cork certainly wasn't 14 years old. It looked brand …

2001 vintage

not sure what to think about this one, agree the cork seemed relatively fresh

2001 vintage

TBD

2001 vintage

My bottle was a fake purchased from WTSO. There is no way that the cork that I pulled out of this bottle was anywhere near 10 years old, and the wine was not more than 3-4 years old - maybe younger. That said, it was not an unpleasant young wine. Perhaps the counterfeiters have transitioned from the super high-priced old classics to highly-rated, fairly widely-produced mid-priced wines.

2001 vintage

Still has plenty of life. Love where it's at right now. Sorry to see my last bottle go.

2001 vintage

Dejligt glas vin, let krydret med et ordentlig skud fad. Er normalt ikke den store Ribera-fan, men denne vin har en lækker duft af kirsebær og vanille. God krydret, men fortsat fin smag af kirsebær, brombær og et markant, men velafstemt fadpræg.

2006 vintage

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Balbas, Ribera del Duero, Reserva

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