TN:1985 Cune Rioja Reserva

I found four bottle of this while rummaging around in the cellar. I remember when I bought the case in 1990 and the price stickers were still on the bottles at $7.99 USD. I didn't hold out much hope but I figured that I would crack one and if it was over the hill...down the drain they would go. To my surprise the wine was quite tasty. Somewhat light reddish brick in color, quite clear with just a touch of sediment on the side of the bottle. The initial nose was quite tight but it quickly opened up to reveal warm sweet cherry notes with a fair amount of tea and a toch of cedar. There was a pronouced floral rose note on the nose and as the wine opened after an hour it smelled very much like old Barolo with heavy tar, tea and roses. It was light on front palate but gained power with time in the glass. Red Cherry, a bit of red raspberry, some nutmeg and clove spice components and a touch of vanilla showed in the layers of flavors. The wine still had a zingy acidity and a fair amount of fine tannic grip on the finish. I'd give the wine a solid "B" on the Dale scale.