My Favourite Red

So I gave you the goods about one of my favourite whites and thought it was about time I weighed in on a red!  There have been so many trends in reds since I started on my wine journey.  My first red was Slinger’s grape wine out of BC. I had it on my 18th birthday, courtesy of my first sommelier advisor, Joe L.  It was masterfully made by Stephen Slinger, an ex-jockey turned winemaker. This event moved me out of the drinking game for about the next 15 years until I decided to fall back off the wagon arriving in the era of Australian exports.  Many at the turn of the century were enamoured with (and maybe still are) the wines of Wolf Blass.  Yellow Label Cab Sauvignon and Green Label Shiraz flowed with reckless fruit forward abandon.  I loved that deep purple elixir but it was a short affair as it was then when I started my wine classes which my kids still call drinking lessons. And it was at wine appreciation class number 1 where I found my first mistress and her name was Rioja!

I have to stop personifying wines but after all they are living things you know and Rioja is my love for so many reasons.  Maybe it’s her patience.  The winemakers in Rioja will hold onto their wines for such a long time in barrel and bottle before putting her on the shelf.  At present I am buying a fair amount of Bordon Gran Reserva which is a 2007. 11 years old and just hitting the shelf , now that is patience!  A Gran Reserva in Rioja must be aged for a minimum of 60 months and spend a minimum of 18 months in small oak barrels but the winemakers will take as long as they please so it can be 10 years before many see the shelves.  As a result of the oak and ageing time my mistress is rich and complex and of course, full-bodied.  This is serious wine and never disappoints.  I love that it is robust and usually has a bit of balsamic and garrigue qualities in my favourite examples.  The 2008 CVNE Imperial Reserve was an outstanding example for my taste.

My final thought is that my mistress is an inexpensive date, relatively speaking.  It all stems back to the mid 19th century phylloxera blight in France.  The result was some excellent Bordeaux winemakers moving down to the Rioja until the French vines could be restored to previous grandeur.  The winemakers went back to Bordeaux but left some extra skills and craftsmanship with Rioja. I have tasted so many excellent Rioja’s at the $50 to $100 price point that can compete with Bordeaux wines at a much much higher price point.  So for me, Spanish Riojas are amongst the best value wines in the world!