La Rioja Alta
Rioja Gran Reserva Selección Especial, '904'
Rioja Gran Reserva Selección Especial, '904'
- 90% Tempranillo, 10% Graciano
- The first vintage to be optically sorted berry by berry, therefore also the first vintage to be labeled as “Seleción Especial”
- Alcoholic fermentation in tank for 21 days
- Racked to house-coopered American oak barrels (average age 4.5 years) in January of 2016
- Aged for four years in barrel with manual rackings every six months
- Bottled in February 2020
Info
Producer:
Vintage:
2015
Country:
Spain
Region:
La Rioja
Appellation:
Rioja
Variety:
Tempranillo-Based Blend
Color:
Red
Farming Practice:
Practicing Organic
Sizes Available
| Full Bottle | ES-LRA-30-15 | 12/750ml |
| Magnum | ES-LRA-30-15M | 6/1500ml |
Press & Reviews
James Suckling
Score
98
Date
2023-08-24
"#82 Top 100 Wines of 2023: Very impressive complexity and width on the nose, showing lots of savoriness with mushrooms, sandalwood, cedar, sweet spices, dried oranges and tobacco. Really even and juicy on the palate with fine and very present tannins. Juicy, creamy finish lasting a minute. Really elegant and layered. It goes on and on. A real Rioja Gran Reserva and I recommend buying a case! The first vintage that La Rioja Alta labelled ÁSeleccion Especial,. So appealing now, but this will evolve well in the next 20 years."
Tim Atkin, MW
Score
96
Date
2021-11-23
John Gilman
Score
95+
Date
2023-07-10
Vinous
Score
95
Date
2024-04-18
"The 2015 Gran Reserva 904 is a blend of 90% Tempranillo and 10% Graciano from Rioja Alta, aged for up to four years in American oak barrels. This garnet red wine with a brick sheen features an evolved and complex nose. It offers notes of cola, licorice, sour cherry and dried flowers, accompanied by hints of leather and herbs. On the palate, it is dry, silky and juicy, with fine-grained tannins and a chalky texture that lead to a nimble flow and a lingering finish. This is an old-school, precise Rioja that sets the standard for the region and will delight many a consumer."
Wine Advocate
Score
95
Date
2024-02-29
"I tasted again the 2015 Gran Reserva 904 Selecci¢n Especial, a blend of 90% Tempranillo from their vineyards in Villalba, Bri¤as and Rodezno, with 10% Graciano from the Montecillo Vineyard in Fuenmayor that was picked 23 days later than the Tempranillo that I had already tasted in mid-2022 before the wine was released. Time in bottle has done it some good, polishing the strong tannins that are the signature from 2015, though they are still not fully resolved, and a few more years in bottle will do it good. It's tasty, very classical, balanced and fresh. Impressive for such a powerful year. It was bottled in March 2020 after it matured in used American oak barrels for four years."
Wine Spectator
Score
93
Date
2024-08-31
"Rich and velvety, with a lovely range of mulled cherry, dark chocolate, herbed olive, eucalyptus, iron and milled pepper notes gliding across the palate in a supple, medium- to full-bodied frame. Reveals fine-grained, chalky tannins that are well-meshed with the dark, aromatic profile, while hints of forest floor and sandalwood linger on the finish. Tempranillo and Graciano. Better than previously reviewed. Drink now through 2035. 12,500 cases made, 3,200 cases imported."
Jancis Robinson
Score
17.5
Date
2024-04-26
"Pale crimson-brick hue. Lean and savoury, with pure red fruit – pomegranate – and a gentle salted-almond note. So elegant and long, with a deliciously salty finish. (FG)"
REVIEWS FROM PAST VINTAGES
2016
James Suckling
Score
97
Date
2024-08-15
"Such a deep and complex gran reserva with richness and depth. Genuinely intense and harmonious, with cigar box, pine cones, black mushrooms and high-grade wood and vanilla. Juicy, flavorful and really long. Goes on for a minute, if not more. Such a hedonistic Rioja that delivers sheer pleasure. 90% tempranillo and 10% graciano. Drink or hold."
2016
Wine Advocate
Score
96
Date
2025-02-27
"I find the 2016 Gran Reserva 904 to be spectacular and a textbook example of the grand traditional style. It was produced with 90% Tempranillo and 10% Graciano from a selection of vineyards in search of balanced wines with silky tannins, good acidity, character, length and aging potential. The élevage is long, four years in used barrels averaging 4.5 years of age, during which time the wine is manually racked every six months. It's ripe with 14.5% alcohol, a pH of 3.61 and 5.4 grams of acidity, but the wine is super fresh and complex, with aromas of cigar box, balsamic, dry tea leaves, aromatic herbs, camphor, antiquary furniture and tobacco. It's elegant and intense, with pungent flavors and very good freshness, and it's silky, textured and nicely structured, with volume, clean, intense and long."
2016
Tim Atkin, MW
Score
95
Date
2025-02-27
"Gloriously, even defiantly, traditional in style, this is a still youthful Gran Reserva from a cooler vintage, featuring Tempranillo and 10% Graciano. Mocha, Asian spice and ash aromas lead you into a palate that's floral, elegant and refined, with layers of tobacco leaf, pomegranate and wild strawberry, sculpted tannins and acidity to age. 2026-2040"
2011
James Suckling
Score
96
Date
2021-11-23
2011
Decanter
Score
95
Date
2021-11-10
2011
John Gilman
Score
95
Date
2011
Tim Atkin, MW
Score
95
Date
2021-11-10
2011
Vinous
Score
94
Date
2020-09-01
2011
Wine Advocate
Score
94
Date
2020-10-30
2011
Wine and Spirits
Score
94
Date
2020-12-01