CVNE Contino Gran Reserva 2016 (TA 94)

Tim Atkin 94 points.
Intense aromas of black fruit, red plums, blackberries and something liqueur-like. It gradually gains in complexity with spicy notes, nuances of cocoa and chocolate, liquorice and fine toasted notes appearing.

In 1973, Cvne and the family who own the winery created the first Rioja "chateau". Viñedos del Contino forms a set of vineyards surrounding an old country house, in a curve of the river Ebro. Their wines are made exclusively from the vines planted in their 62 hectares of land, located in Laserna, near Laguardia, in the Rioja Alavesa. Contino Gran Reserva is made from grapes selected from the vineyards surrounding the house, with over 60 years old Tempranillo vines. After being destemmed the grapes ferment in concrete deposits and macerate for 15 to 20 days. The malolactic fermentation takes place in new barrels. The wine is then put into French and American oak barrels where it ages for over two years, followed by three years of ageing in the bottle in the winery's cellars before being released onto the market.

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