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Also Recommended
Picture
Product Name
Vintage
Price
Varietal
Country
Region
Appellation
Size
Additional Discount
Original Item
2009
$61.95
Tempranillo
Spain
La Rioja
Rioja
750ml
N/A
Better Price, Same Score
2017
$50.75
Tempranillo
Spain
Castilla Y Leon
Toro
750ml
12B / $50.15
Closest Match
2018
$64.94
Tempranillo
Spain
Castilla Y Leon
Ribera Del Duero
750ml
12B / $63.64
Best QPR in Price range
2015
$44.37
Tempranillo
Spain
La Rioja
Rioja
750ml
More wines available from La Rioja Alta
Pre-Arrival
La Rioja Alta Rioja Gran Reserva 890 2001
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No doubt about it: ‘This is the best 890 in our history,' declares Julio Sáenz, technical director of La Rioja...
Pre-Arrival
La Rioja Alta Rioja Gran Reserva 890 2005
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The aromas to this are stunning with dried strawberry, stone and fresh mushroom. Full body and very tight with...
Pre-Arrival
La Rioja Alta Rioja Gran Reserva 890 2010
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This is really refined and complex, with dark mineral, savory berries, mussels, walnuts, sweet spices, truffles,...
Pre-Arrival
La Rioja Alta Rioja Gran Reserva 904 1997
750ml - 1 Bottle
Bottle:
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The current release is the 1997 Gran Reserva 904, still densely colored and alluringly perfumed. Aromas of dried...
Pre-Arrival
La Rioja Alta Rioja Gran Reserva 904 2001
750ml - 1 Bottle
Bottle:
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This is a very complete wine with such beautiful length and intensity. It’s compact and very driven with a great...
More Details
Winery
La Rioja Alta
Vintage: 2009
Despite less than ideal climatic conditions, featuring storms which threatened an otherwise perfect year, most parts of California had an excellent year for viticulture. Chardonnays and Sauvignon Blancs were picked at optimum ripeness, and Californian white wine was just about as good as it could be. Surprises and overcoming difficulties summed up much of the United States' wine industry in 2009, and many of the results from Oregon, Washington State and all over California speak for themselves, with the flagship Cabernet Sauvignon grapes having developed healthy, thick skins and thus plenty of character and distinction. Elsewhere in the New World, South Africa had a very good year in 2009, and wineries across the cape of the African continent are proclaiming it a truly great vintage.
In most of Europe, fine weather and punctual ripening periods produced some excellent wines, with many of the best coming out of France's Bordeaux and the surrounding regions. Merlot had an exceptionally good year in France, and wineries are proclaiming that the 2009 Merlot harvest was one of the best in living memory. Indeed, across most of France, ripening was relatively even, and red wine grapes such as Cabernet Franc, Syrah and others were reportedly highly characterful, with plenty of the required tannin levels with which to make high quality wines. Italy, too, had a very good 2009. Piedmont reported extremely favorable conditions throughout 2009, and their signature Nebbiolo grapes were more or less perfect when harvested, having benefited from the slight drop in temperature at the end of their ripening period. Veneto, too, had an enviable year, producing superb Pinot Grigio and Chardonnay wines in 2009.
Varietal: Tempranillo
The Tempranillo grape varietal is often referred to as Spain's 'noble grape', and has over the past century been planted in several countries around the world. Tempranillo grapes produce beautiful ruby red wines, packed full of fascinating flavors which range from intensely fruity, to deep, dark and spicy, holding notes of vanilla, tobacco and leather. Their black skins hold plenty of tannins, and as such, they are often blended with other more rounded or brighter wines, to balance out the character and produce some truly exceptional examples. Tempranillo grapes often fall to a wide range of diseases, and are greatly effected by climatic conditions. They tend to grow best, however, in areas with a mixture of heat and bright sunshine, and brisk breezes which can cool the vines.
Region: La Rioja
The northern Spanish region of La Rioja has been producing many of Spain's finest and most characterful wines for generations, and is a historic region of country featuring several fascinating examples of ancient wine making practices. The wines of La Rioja stand up as some of the finest in the world, with devoted fans across the globe drawn to their rich flavors, relatively light body, and complex, deep and enticing aromas. Typically, wineries in La Rioja use the fine Tempranillo grapes which grow in abundance on the excellent soils of the region, and occasionally blend their wines with the highly aromatic Garnacha varietal, amongst others. There has also been an increase of interest in La Rioja's superb white wines in recent years, which usually utilize the Viura varietal grape and result in exquisite aged bottles.
Country: Spain
Ever since the Phoenicians and Romans brought their knowledge of vine cultivation to Spanish soils, the country's culture has grown alongside wine production, with wine being a vital part of Spanish identity and Spanish traditions. Each region of Spain has a wine quite distinct from the others, and it is produced by smallholders and families as much as it is by large companies and established wineries. From the relatively mild and lush regions of La Rioja to the arid plateaus that surround Madrid, grapes are grown in abundance for the now booming Spanish wine industry, and new laws and regulations have recently been put in place to keep the country's standards high. By combining traditional practices with modern technology, Spanish wineries are continuing to produce distinctive wines of great character, flavor and aroma, with the focus shifting in recent decades to quality over quantity.