CVNE, Rioja Gran Reserva Imperial

CVNE, Rioja Gran Reserva Imperial(raised for 24 months in American oak casks), Bright ruby red; doesn't look to be 11 years old. Powerful, oak spiced aromas of candied cherry and raspberry, with suave vanilla, mocha and floral nuances and slow building tobacco and leather elements. Pliant, palate staining red fruit and floral pastille flavors show impressive depth and heft, with a good lashing of sweet vanillin oak. Sweet and expansive on the gently tannic finish, which shows

the wine is fresh

Full bodied

but it is incredibly delicious today

which flirts with perfection

hedonistic wine with all the elements in the right place

Balsamic and truffle notes pepper the palate of this handsome Barolo

tobacco leaf and floral notes stand out here

I was frankly shocked to find that the aromatic profile here was even more elegant and arguably finer than that of the Amoureuses with its bright red and blue pinot fruit

there is a wall of dark

monumental Champagne

Will the 2009 shut down in bottle

eventually unfurling to offer subtle scents of fresh pineapple