I have been surprised in both directions by Spanish wines in the past, but I am happy to report that this Castillo San Lorenzo Rioja is a winner.
Spicy and beguiling it is a classic Rioja. Notes of plums linger like an exhausted zebra after a long – albeit successful – escape from a hungry lioness. With Rioja the term ‘Reserva’ actually means something. The wine will have been aged for at least three years, of which at least one is in oak. That gives the Tempranillo-based wine a woody depth and a vanilla edge.
Verdict: Seek out and quaff.
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