Berberana Cosecha Especial 1952 Gran Reserva

Wine: Berberana Cosecha Especial 1952 Gran Reserva
Winery: Bodegas Berberana (Ollauri, La Rioja)
Appellation / Region: D.O.Ca. Rioja
Varietals: 60% Tempranillo, 30% Garnacha, 10% Mazuelo
ABV: [Not specified]
Winemaking

Initial aging of 18 to 24 months in large, seasoned oak vats from the winery's foundational era, where it completed fermentation and stabilization before racking. Subsequently, the wine was aged in used 225-liter American oak barrels for 8 to 9 years. Bottled directly from the barrel in the mid-1960s. It remained in the winery’s underground cellars for a minimum of 4 years prior to its commercial release.

 

Tasting Notes
 

Appearance: A stunning, very pale brownish-ruby with medium-low depth (capa). A trace of extremely fine sediment at the base slightly breaks its absolute clarity. Clear, bright, and luminous with tawny highlights. The rim is broad, merging with the meniscus, featuring thick, persistent legs (tears).

 

Nose: Patience is essential; this wine requires time. Upon opening, it appears reductive and seemingly tired. Initially dominated by a ferruginous sensation—a curious mix of old rigging, tar, caulking, "dirty" toast, and charcoal—it sits on a base of caramelized sugar and a disconcerting range reminiscent of "Marmite," yeast extract, or toasted malt. We initially feared excessive bottle reduction, but fortunately, the wine recomposes itself piece by piece. The toasted notes soften, giving way to creamy nuances of toffee and vanilla. It overflows with maturity, showing an elegant cocoa butter note accompanied by fig compote, leading into a greater presence of very ripe fruit—highly characteristic of the Garnacha component—with a trail of cocoa powder. It becomes increasingly harmonious, elegant, and rounded, embodying the classic, traditional Berberana profile. It concludes as a shaded walk through earthy notes of leaf litter, humus, and high-quality withered petals. Very similar to the 1964 Cosecha Especial, but with an added layer of elegance and the winery's historic hallmark.

 

Palate: On the palate, we find a spicy and fresh wine with intense acidity—remarkably youthful, refined, and thin, yet still possessing great "grip" (garra). It has a nervous, spirited edge that does not compromise its balance (mature and settled, with a layer of fine wood and a hint of the sweetness found in great wines). As elegant as it is lively. Among the best ever tasted from this winery. Together with the '64 C.E., it forms an unrepeatable duo. It is inexplicable how a wine can maintain such integrity after 60 years. I suspect no modern Rioja will reach the year 2070 looking half as young as this wine does today. Berberana held a formula for eternal youth; one wonders what they did with it.

 

Personal Score: 97
Tasting Group Score: 97