Ramirez de la Piscina Rioja Gran Reserva 2017 (750ml) *
Product price
$43.99
Description
The Gran Reserva designation in Rioja signals patience: extended time in oak and further rest in bottle before release. This one comes from Rioja Alavesa, made by Ramirez de la Piscina in the 2017 vintage, a difficult growing season marked by frost that thinned yields, with the higher-elevation sites coming through best. Very little of it was made. It followed the house's Reserva method but spent longer in barrel (24 months across French and American oak) and longer still in bottle (around three years) before it saw the market.
The years of aging show in the glass. Tannins have softened toward something melting and pliant, and the fruit reads mature rather than fresh, currant and dried cherry with a faint jammy edge over a woody, spiced backdrop. It's dry and firmly built, concentrated at the core with just enough juiciness to keep it lively, and it carries the structure to keep evolving over the next decade or more.
Product Details
| Category | Wine |
| Country | Spain |
| Region | Rioja |
| Varietal | Rioja Red Blend |
| Producer | Ramirez de la Piscina |
| Vintage | 2017 |
| Size | 750 ML |
| Subtype | Still |
Expert Reviews
From the dreaded frost year that nonetheless produced great quality where it could, higher-elevation vineyards fared better, yet even still, very little of the 2017 Gran Reserva was produced. Employing the same winemaking process as its Reserva, it spent longer in oak (24 months) and more time in bottle (36 months). The aging is tangible in soft, melty tannins and a spiced, mature fruit profile of currant and dried cherry. Structured, it will age well another 10-15 years. (Jeb Dunnuck, July 2025)
The 2017 Gran Reserva Ramírez de la Piscina, from Rioja Alavesa, was aged for 24 months in a mix of French and American oak. Presenting mild red and black fruit aromas, including cherry and a hint of jam, over a woody backdrop, it's dry and structured in the mouth with coarse tannins and a core of ripe fruit. Mildly juicy and concentrated, the winemakers handled a difficult year, 2017, well. (Vinous)