Located on a beautiful 740-acre estate (including 220 acres of vineyards and a huge olive grove) in the township of Fuenmayor in northern Spain, Bodegas Altanza only grows one red grape—Tempranillo. And they do it really well. Here’s one affordable example that has just been released in the LCBO.
Lealtanza Reserva 2015 — Rioja, Spain ($22.95)
The 2015 edition of this vegan-friendly red wine spent 21 months in oak and has been bottle-aging for almost four years since. There’s still plenty of oomph at the moment, in case you want to hold this horse back and watch it evolve, but it’s also happy to be uncorked right now. The fruit is dark red and meaty, with aromas of raspberry, plum, black cherry and redcurrant—all wrapped in smoke, leather, olives and oak. Fine tannins coat the tongue, with that rich, dark, earthy red fruit laced in spice and cedar doing a great job of concealing the 14% alcohol content. Somewhere between medium- and full-bodied, it boasts a lovely, long finish. But the more I think about it, the more it might benefit from another year or two in the cellar. 91
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