Reservas and Gran Reservas
Reservas and Gran Reservas
Ver mensaje de RayQI find that I tend to buy a lot of Crianza wines from Ribera del Duero.
Also some single vineyard or ";special"; bottlings. ( eg Mauro VS/Terreus/Regina Vides/Malleolus)
However I rarely buy a reserva or gran reserva wine.
Do you ? and if so from which producers ?
How do you think they compare to the type of wines mentioned above ?
Yes and no...
Ver mensaje de RayQWell, I mean I buy so frequently either Crianza or Reserva and GR. The crux of the matter is that only a few DOs make wine using this naming convention... DOQ Rioja, DO Ribera del Duero and some others like Alicante (thinking about Enrique Mendoza wines). On the other hand, the marketing stream has guided to many wineries to make their wines without using the ’traditional’ way used in Rioja/Ribera and to avoid that customers make any relation between Rioja (or any other ’tradition’) and their wines; so they’ve avoided the use of these words and not only wine making methods.
In addition to this in the last 5 years or so a lot of new DOs, VdT, ’Vinos de Pago’ and all the fuss has been created, so even winegeeks like us refuse this kind of wines (crianza/reserva/gran reserva), ’cos aren’t the last-big-wonder, or not-99-points-wine and, not over-over-hyped and, of course, they’re not a recurring buzz-wine... So maybe they’re not (soooo good!) winegeeks like us ;) That’s life!
On the other hand, my last spanish red wine bought was a GR :)
Regards,
Jose
Re: Yes and no...
Ver mensaje de joseWell that’s exactly my point.
Even these ";pagos"; etc exist in Rioja and Ribera del Duero.
I have in the past found some of the reservas over oaky
but am wondering if I am missing a trick by not buying more of the reserva wines ?
are there differences between the GR and the single vineyard wines ?
does the single vineyard necessarialy mean modern and the GR traditional ??
Re: Reservas and Gran Reservas
Ver mensaje de RayQWell, in fact and except from Gran Reserva the other categories with –more or less- se same name also exist in the rest of DO’s, not only in Alicante. In fact Jean Leon produces a quite nice Gran Reserva…. Anyway, I tend to consume mostly “modern” wines and as Jose said these wines tend to avoid the use of such “old fashioned” expressions….
Cheers and happy new year….
Re: Reservas and Gran Reservas
Ver mensaje de RayQI think that the traditional ";GR"; are an adquired taste. I used not to like them at all, and now I’m starting to like them more and more and more, depending on my mood and the moment. I find the Bosconia R and GR (very easy to find in USA, not so easy in Spain) extremely pleasant, an entirely different kind of wine and very satisfactory (and very reasonably priced); I also like the Jean Leon that Paco mentioned ... my entire admiration, however, goes for the (very rare anymore) R and GR traditional Rioja whites (Tondonia, and even Gravonia). But most of the time, I’m a ";modern"; wines type of woman ...
MaJesus
Re: Reservas and Gran Reservas
Ver mensaje de MaJesusIt would make for an interesting tasting wouldn’t it ?
A selection of reservas/GR against some of the ";pagos"; etc
Depending on the winery...
Ver mensaje de RayQMaybe you can find some over oaky wines, but it happen not only with Reserva and Gran Reserva, even with Crianza, ’Vinos de Pago’, Vdt or any.
Usually (but again depending on producers) the Reserva and GR were made not every vintage, but great vintages (like Millesime concept in Champagne and Cava), with best grapes that can come from many different ’Pagos’ or from only one and with some characteristics (pH, sugar and all these kind of concepts) that will allow them to develop the best of them with aging process.
The use of only a vineyard is again a buzz, like ’monovarietal’ (how do you say in english the use of only one kind of grape?). It’s normal the use of only a variety somewhere, but not everywhere as it happens today. For instance, the usual cuvée in Rioja was Tempranillo, Graciano, Mazuelo, but last years the current-stream is the use of Tempranillo (only). Nevertheless there’re some wines that can’t be if they’re not made only with the grapes of the only vineyard, for instance, Contino Viña del Olivo.
Obviously there’re many differences between only-a-vineyard-wine and a GR-wine, but the main difference is that they’re not disjoint concepts. There’s no problem doing a R o GR with a single vineyard grapes.
In addition to the wines we’ve mentioned in the post ’til this moment (Bosconia,Tondonia, Jean-Leon, Enrique Mendoza), I’d suggest some others. For instance, in the last months I’m gettin’ in the mood to drink again Imperial (CVNE). I do remember the 904 (La Rioja Alta) as one of the most elegant wines I’ve ever drank. 809 looks like a prettier one, but absolutely out of my budget. Not more expensive that the one-hit-wonder that flood the market every single year, but my wallet use to have more spiders than notes ;) I’ve been reported that Marqués de Murrieta has changed their style going to a parkerian one, but well... ’til now it’s been known by doing some nice and clasical Reservas and GR (the one I bought recently is a ’89 GR that looks really yummi! ;)
Anyway it’s important to keep in mind that these wines are not point collectors. Despite some wineries are changing this concept (ggrrrrr #-/ ) they were made keeping in mind a different way that the one we see nowadays. Even drank young (let me say that Imperial 2000 is young) their fruit and wood is different that the ’fruit blast’, globs, colour, etc we can find in other kind of wines. Better? Worst? It depends on you. I do really like them.
Regards,
Jose
Interesting taste but...
Ver mensaje de RayQNot with the usual parameters. Many wines, as we all know, are made just for tasting them. A couple (or only one) of shots and you’re full. To be honest the tasting should be... with food! Cochinillo (little pigs), cordero (lamb)... you know, all that spanish yummi food :))))
Oooor... another option would be not to taste last vintage, but assorted vintage. Kind of ’let me have the best vintage of that Vino de Pago and the one of that GRs’ ;)
Regards,
Jose