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A Stunning New Rioja Project from the Talented Juan Gil Family!
Plus two 95-point reds from López de Heredia...
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It has been a while since we have offered a Rioja in one of our emails. Today we have three of them for you!
The
2017 Rosario Vera Rioja is gorgeous. It's rich and lavish, with a full complement of dark fruits, copious amounts of spice and a perfect pitch of tannin and oak on the finish. This is unmistakably Rioja. Soft and plush enough to drink any night of the week, and with a crazy-low price of $13.99, it is a screaming case-buy candidate.
Bright, approachable and mouthwatering delicious, the Rosario Vera is a perfect representation of the modern side of Rioja. Representing old-school Rioja today are a pair of highly rated, winery-aged beauties from the
the incomparable R. López de Heredia. Scroll down for complete tasting notes on all three of these wines, then quickly click the
Big Yellow Button
to get your hands on these Spanish beauties!
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New Hours for Curbside Pick-Up
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Tuesday to Friday
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10:00 am - 5:00 pm
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Saturday
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9:00 am - 5:00 pm
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Sunday & Monday
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Not Open for Pick-up
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When you arrive at the store please contact us at the email or phone number listed below and inform us of: 1) Your name, 2) Your vehicle make/model/color, and 3) Order number(s).
Wine will only be placed in the trunk or back hatch. If you need to make space, please do so before we arrive with your wine. For your safety and ours, we will wait until you are securely back in your vehicle before putting the wine in your trunk. For public safety reasons, our stores are NOT open for public access at this time.
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2017 Rosario Vera
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When we visited Spain two years ago with the Juan Gil family, we were given a sneak preview of their Rosario Vera estate in Rioja. We knew 2017 would be the inaugural vintage and it has more than lived up to our lofty expectations!
Made entirely from Tempranillo, the 2017 Rosario Vera is a wonderful example of modern Rioja. The flavors are ripe, effusive and complex with notes of blackberry, black cherry, plum, blueberry, cedar cigar box, wildflowers, vanilla and tea leaf along with a cascade of oak spice. Medium-plus in body, the finish is perfectly haunted with a touch of tannin and flavors that seemingly never end. Quite frankly, it is delicious in every way.
This is the kind of wine that you are simply going to enjoy drinking, and it will pair well with just about anything you have on the table. This strong debut has already received critical acclaim, earning this 91-point review from Vinous...
"(Malo followed by 10 months of aging in a 50/50 combination of new and used French oak barrels) Youthful purple color. Expressive aromas of ripe, dark berries, incense, potpourri, toasty oak and cola. Lush, fleshy and alluringly sweet, offering palate-coating, oak-spices black and blue fruit and floral pastille flavors that show very good depth. Smooth and lively on the finish, where sneaky tannins shape the lingering dark fruit and spice notes. Drinking window: 2020 - 2027."
- 91 Points, Vinous - Josh Raynolds (2/2019)
It's rare to find such a lip-smackingly delicious wine from Rioja for this price. The Juan Gil family has really knocked it out of the park with this one. Looking online we found six listings. Our price is tied as lowest. If you're looking for a wine to have on hand for any-night-of-week enjoyment, this is an outstanding choice.
Vin Chicago Price: 13.99 ($167.88 per case of twelve)
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A Pair of Riveting Riojas from the Legendary López de Heredia!
If Rosario Vera is a great example of modern Rioja, R. López de Heredia is the perfect illustration of classic wine from that region. Today, we offer 2010 and 2006 vintage wines that are just coming into their perfect drinking windows. Grab a few bottles of each of these 95-point reds to enjoy now and over the next several years.
 2010 R. López de Heredia
"Viña Cubillo" Crianza
Rioja, Spain
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A blend of 65% Tempranillo, 25% Garnacho with the remainder Mazuelo and Graciano, the 2010 Viña Cubillo is beautiful. The wine is all at once fresh, rich, focused and complex. In other words, you definitely won't get bored with glass after distinctive glass of this one!
"The 2010 Vina Cubillo Tinto Crianza is superb and shows great depth and nuance, with great freshness, and the red cherries are complemented by notes of blood oranges, nutmeg and other spices. It has a soft and harmonious palate, with great balance and very good freshness. 90,000 bottles produced. It was bottled in April 2017. Drink Date: 2019 - 2024."
- 93 Points, Wine Advocate (6/28/2019)
"Cubillo is a very focused and quite crisp style of red that has spent three years in barrique and then in larger cask to wait for bottling, which happens two years before the expected release. The richness and depth of complex dried wood and spice here is seamlessly sewn into the dried red and dark cherries. The palate is pinned around a fresh-blackberry core that marries still sweet fruit to more savory style. Long and balanced. The tannins are fine yet assertive. It freshens into the finish nicely. Drink or hold."
- 95 Points, James Suckling (7/4/2019)
We found 85 online listings with a median of $28. As usual, our price is a good bit less. If you like complex, classic, old-school reds, this is in your wheelhouse.
Vin Chicago Price: 22.99
 2006 R. López de Heredia
"Viña Tondonia" Reserva
Rioja, Spain
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Viña Tondonia is the flagship wine of the estate. This 2006 bottling, which was initially released from the winery just over a year ago, is a blend of 70% Tempranillo, 20% Garnacha, 5% Mazuelo and 5% Graciano.
More than any other wine in the López de Heredia lineup, this is the bottling that has developed them such a cult following. Imagine a Napa winery cellaring a 95-Point wine for well over a decade and then selling it for this price. It just wouldn't happen!
"The red flagship 2006 Vina Tondonia Reserva was inspired by the vineyards of the Medoc but produced with local grapes, 70% Tempranillo, 20% Garnacho, 5% Graciano and 5% Mazuelo, which achieved 13% alcohol in 2006. It always matures in used American oak barriques for some six years. The oldest of all the reds I tasted, it was also the one with more freshness, which speaks to the quality of the vineyard. Drink 2018 - 2028."
- 95 Points, Wine Advocate (2/28/2018)
"This is a remarkably lively wine for a 12-year-old Rioja with notes of licorice and dried cherries and a very elegant tannin structure that runs through the medium to full body of this red like a silk thread. The dry finish is long and polished. Drink or hold."
- 94 Points, James Suckling (8/2018)
The median online price is $45. We are ten bucks less. Those who are acquainted with the wonderful freshness and nuance of this wine, will be all over this one!
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If you cannot see a yellow button, please either click here,
or contact us at 773-791-7936 for assistance. |
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