Marques de Murrieta Rioja Gran Reserva 750ml

“Dark, bright-rimmed garnet. Aromas of dried cherry, red currant, potpourri, vanilla and incense; a smoky nuance builds in the glass. Sweet, energetic and focused on the palate, offering cherry and red berry compote and rose pastille flavors that deepen and pick up a musky chewing tobacco nuance on the back half. Delivers a compelling of power and finesse and finishes smoky and gently tannic, with strong persistence and lingering oak spice, cherry and floral notes.”

“The 2014 Gran Reserva Limited Edition, a barrel selection from the Reserva, is a blend of the more age-worthy wines. It's made up of 84% Tempranillo with 9% Graciano, 5% Mazuelo and 2% Garnacha, all from their 300 hectares of estate vineyards. The destemmed and lightly crushed grapes fermented by plot and variety in stainless steel, and the varieties were kept separate throughout the 25 months of élevage in American barriques. When discussing the latest vintages, the 2014 is very curious: the harvest was truly challenging, with lots of rain, ripeness problems and botrytis; so, in principle, it didn't look like a good vintage, and they decided not to keep the red Castillo Ygay. But now, seeing the evolution of this wine, they are kicking themselves. The wine has a clear classical profile, with developed aromas of autumn forest, truffle, smoked cured meat, cigar ash and sweet spices. It's sleek and polished, with resolved, fine-grained tannins and a dry, serious finish. This is surprisingly good and should evolve nicely in bottle.”