Still youthful in expression, the 2015 Gran Reserva El Puntido opens with red fruit and fresh plum alongside balsamic hints, fine oak and touches of thyme and gentle camphor. Dry and expansive on the palate, it shows...

A full-bodied, ripe and delicious red with firm, lightly chewy tannins. Lots of cherries, dried flowers, coconut and rosemary. Lavender and white roses, too. Firm and very well structured. Tight and fresh at the end...

Beautiful transparency here with fresh flowers, green tobacco, pine needles, crushed stones and sandalwood. Dark fruits in the center. Full-bodied with a wonderful balance of fruit and fine tannins as well as mineral...

I like the austerity and seriousness of the 2018 Contador, which has very similar parameters as the 2019 but comes through as fresher and more balanced, with very fine tannins and pungent flavors and a long, dry and...

From the sister property of Vega Sicilia in Rioja, a partnership between the Alvarez and Rothschild families, the 2021 Macan Clasico has unrelenting freshness and is gorgeously aromatic. The vintage conditions were...

Very fresh fruit with blue plums, cherries, mineral, iodine and flowers. Really precise tannins on the medium- to full-bodied palate. Long, pristine and minerally in the finish. A field blend of tempranillo, viura...

Polished and structured with firm, very fine tannins. Lots going on here, with layers of black fruit, dried spices, graphite, coconut and cracked pepper. Full-bodied and so intense. Keeps going. Long. The tannins are so...

The 2006 Flor de Pingus is deep purple in color with a superb bouquet of toasty oak, spice box, mineral, incense, black cherry, and blackberry. Youthful, full-bodied, intense, and powerful on the palate, it retains an...

Chalky and intense with so much blackberry character. Some smoke, too. Full body. Firm and chewy with lots of fruit, but a tight and linear finish. Chewy and intense. Needs a year or two to open, but already a joy. Better...

(94+ points) The youngest of the reds I tasted, the 2019 Pícaro del Águila Tinto is their most approachable red and is still serious, vibrant and aromatic with great length and still has good aging potential. They use...

Tempranillo is co-fermented in the 2022 Tinto Vinas Viejas Picaro del Aguila with Albillo, Garnacha, and Bobal, the grapes specifically sourced for this wine from gravelly sites. Whole-cluster fermented in native yeasts...

A field blend of 11 parcels, mostly Tinto Fino with Garnacha and Albillo Mayor, the 2024 is fresh from the rains of the year, with more acidity than the previous vintage. Terroir and varietal-driven, it’s not masked by...

The DNA of Remelluri is here. Wild mountain herb character, structured and firm, these tannins are succulent and deeply expressive. Powerful and assertive red plums, wild cherries and roasting herbs with the oak sitting...

Savory berries, plums, iron, minerals, tobacco, ink and blood oranges. Very bright, juicy and structured, with sensational balance, aged savoriness and brightness that are typical of Tondonia reds. Beautiful now.

The 2013 Reserva Viña Tondonia is a blend of 70% Tempranillo, 20% Garnacha and 10% Graciano and Mazuelo, grown in the calcareous soils of the Tondonia meander in Rioja Alta. Aged extensively in American oak, it offers...

The flagship red, the 2021 Tempranillo Tinta Alta is nearly all Tempranillo with 2% Cabernet Sauvignon, the grapes sourced widely from such marquee sites as Stagecoach, Shake Ridge, and Pierce Ranch, basically blending...

A little reserved at this early stage, you can feel the hew and heft of the tannins keeping everything in check. There is a sense of precision and crafted architecture, concentrated but with the lightest of touches...

Dark fruit, spices and thyme with stony austerity. Medium- to full-bodied, leaning toward medium. Incisive and fresh. Vibrant and cohesive with an angular palate and very focused, chalky tannins. This needs some...

This is a blend of the concentrated and structured 2011, 2013 and 2014 vintages. The wine displays impeccable tannins, complexity and length, feeling remarkably complete due to its aging. Expect notes of blackberries...