2005 Miguel Merino Reserva Rioja

Bright violet color. Sexy black raspberry, potpourri and incense aromas expand with air and pick up a vanilla nuance. At once dense and lively, offering sweet red and dark berry compote flavors with hints of mocha and spicecake. Vanilla and floral notes carry through the very long, sappy, gently tannic finish. (9/ 2012)

The 2005 Reserva has a licorice and leather-tinged bouquet with touches of bacon fat and hung game. The palate is medium-bodied with dry, leathery tannins and gamey fruit. It has a pleasing, savory, classic finish with hints of mocha and dark chocolate. Drink now-2018. (8/ 2012)

We are very pleased to be focusing our Spanish direct import program in Rioja, and most fortunate to have begun working with one of Rioja's most beloved vignerons, Miguel Merino. A longtime participant in the wine business, having sold wine for wine distributors in the States as well as working as an export manager, Miguel has found success every step of the way, and then decided that rather than retire, he wanted to fulfill his dream of owning vines and making wine. Based in the Rioja Alta town of Briones, Miguel Merino makes, as he likes to put it, an "updated classic" style of Rioja, all from his own two hectares of vines and several hectares of vineyards owned by a close friend. All the fruit is from sloped vineyards (Miguel is a fan of his slopes) within the cooler climate Rioja Alta town of Briones, which makes these wine a terrific showcase of the terroir (especially in a region where wines blended from various villages are more often the norm). Produced from vines planted in the 1960s, this is a perfect example of Miguel's "updated classic" description: garnet yet translucent color, deep, savory, meaty dark fruit and black cherry aromas and a very juicy palate of blackberry and black cherry fruit. Rich, and yet perfectly balanced. Drink now and for another decade plus.