Remelluri Rioja is back!

2009 Remelluri Rioja Reserva....$33.99

The 2009 Remelluri Reserva aims at showing the character of Remelluri, as this is the first modern vintage that does not have grapes purchased from external suppliers. These grapes are now in the Lindes range of wines, but in the past they were blended with the estate grapes. The cool Remelluri vineyards behave very well in warmer years. This 2009 is very clean with predominant aromas of earthy red fruit intermixed with notes of vanilla and cinnamon, a satin texture with round, fine-grained tannins and quite classical and very well-proportioned style. This is a great vintage for Remelluri Reserva.

The Remelluri name should be well-known to our readers. The big news here was the return of Telmo Rodriguez, who left the family winery to start his own projects throughout Spain, but returned in February 2010. Many changes have been made, and more will come. For example, he’s starting a solera with Viura, blending different vintages, in a kind of homage to old white Riojas. To start, he’s clearly separating the wines produced with the estate grapes and those produced with grapes purchased from external suppliers, for which he has created the line Lindes de Remelluri (Remelluri borders). He’s also implementing biodynamic practices in the vineyards.

Rated 93/100 The Wine Advocate