Winery: Baron De Ley

Vintage: 2008

Vineyard/Wine Name: Corte Mayor “Crianza”

Wine Category: Rioja

Grape Blend: 100% Tempranillo

Bottle size: 750 ml

Region: Rioja

State or country: Spain

Price: $18

Cases produced: N/A

ABV:13%

The Barrel Cellar Score: 88

Review date: Apr 9, 2019

About the Wine:  The Rioja region of Spain makes some of the finest wines in the world.  It’s known for its bold, spicy reds, warm climate, and rolling hills.  I’m of the opinion that some of the best wine deals and most under rated wines in Europe can be found here.  Grupo Baron De Ley produces a variety of wines at a variety of price points.  All of them are worth checking out.

Color:  Plum with a scarlet rim

Nose:  Dried cherry and oak.

Taste:  This is a big wine.  While balanced, both its tannic presence and acidity stand boldly and with personality.  Dried cherry and raspberry are the stand out flavors with black pepper and oak taking a back seat.  The wine has a full body, a silky texture, and a sustained finish with tobacco, plum, and leather.

Assessment:  There is a lot to love about this wine.  If I hadn’t known the price prior to tasting it, I would have assumed this would have been a dramatically more expensive bottle of wine.  I love its boldness and tannic dryness.  The character introduced by the acidity adds a dimension to the juice not typically found in a wine at this price point.  This is a fancy wine at an inexpensive cost.  Buy this wine and buy lots of it; I can’t wait to do so myself.   Ready to drink now but will hold up with further aging.

Baron De Ley Corte Mayor “Crianza” Rioja 88 points

Pairing recommendation:  Ribeye, lamb, goat cheese, milk chocolate, or dark chocolate.