Rioja Glorioso 1959 Reserva Especial

Wine: Rioja Glorioso 1959 Reserva Especial
Winery: Bodegas Palacio (Laguardia, Álava)
Appellation / Region: D.O.Ca. Rioja (Rioja Alavesa)
Varietals: 90% Tempranillo, 10% Garnacha
ABV: [Not specified]
Winemaking

Grapes purchased from small-scale growers in Rioja Alavesa within a 15-kilometer radius of the winery. The wine spent one year in large, seasoned oak vats to complete malolactic fermentation and stabilize before wood aging. It was manually racked and aged for 36 to 48 months in used 225-liter American oak barrels. Several manual rackings (trasiegas) were performed each year until bottling. A minimum of 3 years of bottle aging in the original foundational cellars in Laguardia was completed prior to release.

 

Tasting Notes
 

Appearance: Very pale brownish-ruby with medium-low depth (capa); somewhat evolved and turbid with fine sediment at the base. It shows orange and amber highlights with a lackluster finish. The rim is broad and fully tawny (tile-red), merging indistinguishably with the meniscus.

 

Nose: A dark, initially dense, and disconcerting nose—complex and challenging to grasp at first. It demands absolute focus. Upon opening, it reveals notes of dried leaves, green tea, thick cassia bark, and nut shells over a spicy backdrop of star anise, black licorice, caramelized sugar, and exotic peppers. It needs to breathe to find its focus without losing its flamboyant, almost "Churrigueresque" air. This is a baroque, ornate red that gradually unveils a myriad of details: wine-soaked staves, cocoa powder, toasted nuances, faisandage, blood clot, mineral/ferruginous hints, charcoal, and a distant glimmer of ripe red fruit enveloped in something akin to flint. It is difficult to dissect due to its sheer complexity and the "tumult" caused by the many figures occupying its altarpiece.

 

Palate: On the palate, there is perhaps less going on, but it is far more accessible. Fresh and spirited (nervioso), it is packed with spicy and bitter nuances and earthy tones that, alongside a fantastic acidity, make you salivate with pleasure. It retains nerve, vigor, and even a certain youthfulness. It is "organoleptically" contradictory, yet it excels in both its styles: moving from the Baroque to Riojan Neoclassicism—to civilization itself. A thrilling wine, like a cinematic double feature. This is how you build a true passion for wine!

 

Personal Score: 98
Tasting Group Score: 98