"96 Points – Luis Gutiérrez (Wine Advocate)
“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 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. This is a very complete year for 904. It's ready, but it should last. Drink 2025-2045”"
'Quite simply, these are some of the finest Riojas that can grace your cellar' Neal Martin
La Rioja Alta was founded by five families at the end of the 19th century and is still run by their descendants today. They are one of the last bastions of the traditional style of Rioja having been producing wine for over 125 years. Indeed, ‘904’ marks the date of this wine’s first vintage.
Gran Reserva 904 is a blend Tempranillo from vines over 60 years old planted in Briñas, Labastida and Villalba, and Graciano from the Montecillo vineyard in the municipality of Fuenmayor. In March following vintage the wine is transferred to 4 year old American oak barrels (made in-house), where it stays for up to 5 years. During aging, the wine is racked by candlelight every six months using traditional barrel-to- barrel methods. The final blend is then bottled at 5 to 6 years from vintage.
This wine is a manifestation of La Rioja Alta’s combination of historic techniques and cutting-edge development. The grapes are sorted first by hand in the vineyard, and then by an optical laser-guided machine that individually assesses hundreds of berries per second. The state-of-the-art winery at Labastida houses a serious research and development division enabling the implementation of new technology when deemed appropriate, whilst maintaining the beautiful style of these wines which have such a devoted following.
