CVNE, IMPERIAL RIOJA GRAN RESERVA 750ML 2017

A bit coiled upon opening, this opens slowly in the glass, revealing beautiful nuance, fragrant herbal details and savoury complexity underneath the broody restraint. Top notes of vanilla, charred oak, camphor and preserved cherry. Fresh and exact on the palate, with dark chocolate and coffee beans lining the muscular tannins. Very long finish, supported by a firm acid backbone. 85% Tempranillo, 10% Graciano and 5% Mazuelo, fermented in small oak vats with malolactic in concrete, then aged in new and second-use oak barrels, 70% French plus American.

The 2017 Gran Reserva Imperial blends 85% Tempranillo, 10% Graciano and 5% Mazuelo from Villalba in Rioja Alta. Aged for 24 months in oak barrels (two-thirds French, one-third American), it's a dark garnet red. The 2017 reveals alluring aromas of sour cherry, blackberry and hints of mint, all set against an oak backdrop. Dry and concentrated, it finishes powerfully, achieving significant nuance for a ripe year in Rioja.

I tasted two vintages of the Gran Reserva from Haro, starting with the 2017 Imperial Gran Reserva from a warm and dry year whose yields were lowered by frost in late April and was saved by rains at the end of July. It's 85% Tempranillo, 10% Graciano and 5% Mazuelo with 14% alcohol, a pH of 3.65 and 5.31 grams of acidity. It fermented in small oak vats followed by malolactic in concrete and aging in French (70%) and American oak barrels for two years, during which time the wine was racked every eight months. It's evolving at a slightly faster pace and maybe it's a little lighter, but I didn't feel the heat, which is quite something. It's drinking well. 75,000 bottles produced. It was bottled in July 2020.