All in all, a successful wine vintage in Spain with the Rioja reds being particularly attractive. There were some instances of frost in late April and early May in Rioja but the damage was not widespread. Flowering took place in excellent conditions and July and August were hot and dry.
It rained intermittently in September and this slightly took the edge off what had otherwise been a perfect growing season. The wines however are extremely impressive, if not quite at the level of the stunning 1994s and 1995s.
In Ribera del Duero unseasonably cold April and May were followed by hailstorms in late June and in mid August. However the vintage was redeemed by the period of warm and dry weather at the beginning of October. The vintage has produced a smaller than average crop of harmonious and concentrated wines that, while approachable now, will amply reward medium term cellaring.
There are some who claim that Gran Reserva Rioja provides almost too much of a good thing; why leave the wine for quite so long in wood, when, with a shorter maturation, one would have a more expressive and robust Reserva wine. These people are entitled to this opinion; indeed, in the vast majority of cases, they are probably right, as there are many rather fragile, lack-lustre Gran Reservas on the market. Not so with La Rioja Alta.
Made up of 90% Tempranillo, with 10% of Graciano, the 1998 was aged for four years in American oak, racked every six months and then bottled with minimal filtration. The colour is typically mature with crepuscular hints of amber at the rim; the nose is, as always, charming, gently lifted with hints of leather, wild strawberry and scorched earth. The acidity on the palate is lifted, but not to excess and it provides an attractive back-drop to the beautifully mature fruit. A very fine wine , wonderfully food friendly; wonderful full stop. Simon Field MW, Fine Wine Buyer
Made up of 90% Tempranillo, with 10% of Graciano, the 1998 was aged for four years in American oak, racked every six months and then bottled with minimal filtration. The colour is typically mature with crepuscular hints of amber at the rim; the nose is, as always, charming, gently lifted with hints of leather, wild strawberry and scorched earth. The acidity on the palate is lifted, but not to excess and it provides an attractive back-drop to the beautifully mature fruit. A very fine wine , wonderfully food friendly; wonderful full stop.
Simon Field MW, Fine Wine Buyer