Description
Bodegas Corral, Rioja Gran Reserva
This flawlessly stored 1975 Gran Reserva delivers a drinking experience beyond exceptional, for $90!
Its extraordinary perfume, vigor, and freshness is guaranteed to leave you stunned silent. Really, unless you’re a die-hard blind taster, you won’t come remotely close to calling this a half-century-old Gran Reserva. How is this possible? Corral’s winemaker, Carlos Rubio, had each bottle assiduously inspected, reconditioned, topped up, and re-corked prior to exiting the cellar. To think you can acquire this fine relic at a cost breakdown of $2/year is absolute insanity!
Bodegas Corral is one of the treasured few centenary estates of Rioja. They were founded in 1898, shortly after phylloxera began decimating the vast majority of European vines, especially those in Bordeaux. Rioja, however, staved off infection until American rootstocks were predominately planted across France in the 1890s.
This antique red, from calcareous clay soils in Rioja Alta, is led by Tempranillo with a small percentage of Graciano and Mazuela to round it out. At Corral’s original cellar, the grapes were de-stemmed and, following fermentation, the resulting wine matured for over three years in a mixture of mostly used French and American barrels. Upon bottling in the early ’80s, this parcel slumbered in Corral’s dark cellars for over 40 years before being shipped to us.
