Marqués del Romeral 1964 Gran Reserva

Wine: Marqués del Romeral 1964 Gran Reserva
Winery: Bodegas Félix Azpilicueta Martínez - AGE Bodegas Unidas (Fuenmayor, La Rioja)
Appellation / Zone: D.O.Ca. Rioja
Varietals: 60% Tempranillo, 25% Garnacha, 15% Mazuelo.
ABV: (Not specified)

Winemaking:
The wine remained for 24 months in large wooden vats to complete malolactic fermentation and stabilize before racking. It was aged for 60 months in neutral 225-liter American oak barrels with an average age of 12 years. Bottling took place between June and October 1972. A minimum of 48 months of bottle aging in the winery’s subterranean cellars was required prior to its commercial release.

 

Tasting Notes

 

Appearance: Garnet-ruby color with medium-high depth; well-extracted and dark. Featuring reddish and coppery reflections with a somewhat muted brilliance. Fine sediment is present at the base. Broad, fully brick-orange rim, showing a sharp contrast against the meniscus.

 

Nose: Alert, expressive, and potent. It unfolds with significant force and a marked toasted character typical of historic Félix Azpilicueta wines: ash, roasted coffee, and ground peppers, supported by a finely vanillic background. A direct and enveloping wine that eschews subtlety in favor of intensity. It offers abundant reduced red fruit in liqueur alongside notes of clove and aromatic herbs like oregano. It shares the structural integrity of the 1962 vintage, though with an expansive vigor that is difficult to contain—a classic trait of the legendary 1964 harvest.

 

Palate: Broad and fleshy, brimming with energy. It is a joyful and savory wine, exceptionally pleasant to drink, packed with reduced red fruits and refined bitter nuances. Lively and vital, it showcases the extraordinary quality of the Garnacha available to the Azpilicueta cellars at the time. Despite its age, it still possesses a youthful "punch" and slight edges yet to be polished. Long and persistent finish with a retronasal hint of sloe gin.

 

Commentary:
The 1964 Marqués del Romeral is a robust testament to the power of the "vintage of the century" in Fuenmayor. It is a wine of great "pegada" (impact) that prioritizes concentration and varietal character over ethereal finesse. A superb example of the house's traditional style, still showing a remarkable capacity for enjoyment and a structural strength that remains defiant after six decades.

 

Personal Score: 92
Tasting Group Average: 92