Rioja for the Holidays

Grapes have been grown in Spain for at least 5,000 years, though winemaking has only been going on for a scant 3,000 years thanks to the Phoenicians. I'm going to skip over a lot of that history and focus on these two wineries, founded in the mid-to-late 1800s.

They caught phylloxera late, so by the time it hit they already knew how to avoid it with New World root stocks. Unlike the US wine industry, Spain didn't have to deal with a 19th century Civil War or early 20th century Prohibition, but her export sales suffered from neutrality in both World Wars and production was impacted by her own tragic Civil War in between the two big European conflicts. Through all of the turmoil, none of the factions were really opposed to wine production or consumption, so things were able to continue on with minor interruptions. I think that Spain might be the only country in the world who had four decades of a military dictatorship and didn't let the wine industry go to hell (I'm looking at you, Yugoslavia and Bulgaria).

Despite the ups and downs of Spanish history, I'm always delighted to try bottles from this country. Not only are they often delicious, but the quality-price ratio is fantastic. You can rarely get well-aged bargains like this from France or Italy or Napa. Here are two that I've had the pleasure to try during this holiday season.

2008 Faustino V Reserva
Rioja, Spain
90% Tempranillo, 10% Mazuelo
$20, 13.5% abv.

This winery was founded in 1861 (rough for us, not too bad for Spain) by Eleuterio Martinez Arzok. The six-year old bottle still shows surprising youth with aromas and flavors of tart red raspberry, earth and a crisp finish. A firm structure demonstrates a serious character that is an absolute steal at the price of two sawbucks.

1998 Bodegas Riojanas Viña Albina Gran Reserva
Rioja, Spain
80% Tempranillo, 15% Mazuelo, 5% Graciano
$50, 13% abv.

I thank the PR firm for providing samples a decade apart, albeit from different wineries. This one is a relative youngster founded in 1890. $50 is not your usual middle of the week wine budget, but this delivers a lot of complexity at sixteen years. Perhaps open it for a celebratory viewing of John Hughes' Sixteen Candles? This one opens with a rich nose of black cherry with touches of tobacco and leather. On the palate it is mild and gentle and showing at just the perfect age. Highly recommended.

Note: These wines were provided as samples for review.