CVNE / Bodegas Contino: Rioja Contino Vina del Olivo 2010

John Gilman über: Rioja Contino Vina del Olivo

-- John Gilman: -- Gilman: The 2010 Viña del Olivo is an outstanding example of this cuvée and looks likely to outpace the 2007 rendition of this wine, though I did not have the opportunity to taste them side by side, as I tried the still unreleased 2010 at the winery in October. This is just a tiny bit lower in octane than the 2007 version, coming in at 14.04 percent alcohol, but it seemed cooler in profile than the small difference in ripeness might suggest. The superb bouquet offers up scents of black cherries, cassis, woodsmoke, incipient notes of meatiness, lead pencil and a very fine, complex base of soil nuances. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and nascently complex, with a superb core, ripe, seamless tannins, excellent focus and grip and a very long, poised and impeccably balanced finish. This is going to be a terrific vintage of Viña del Olivo! 94+/100