I have a real treat for you today, in the golden-caged bottle of today’s fabulous Muriel 2005 Rioja Gran Reserva Tempranillo. This wine is an aged to perfection beauty that is drinking incredibly well at the moment. And, I believe that it has more than a few years left in it - if you can resist drinking you backup bottles for that long!

Today’s Muriel 2005 Rioja Gran Reserva Tempranillo is the top of the range for this winery, that finds its roots in the 1926 grape growing operation that was founded by the father of Julián Murúa Entrena, who today serves as director and principal winemaker for the Muriel winery.

The winery is located in the town of Elciego in Rioja Alavesa. Winery vineyards are located Alavesa and also Rioja Alta and are planted vineyards whose nutrient rich soils are composed of limestone and clay.

Today’s wine hails from the 2005 vintage, which was lauded as one of the best on record in Rioja. This wine is dusky and rich on the nose, and loaded with dark fruit, showing off old world aromas of grilled plum, mission fig, black cherry, aged leather, dry tobacco, cocoa, savory spice, oak, dried earth, pepper and a subtle hint of dark pine tar.

On the palate, the wine is delicious and rich, with dark flavors of blackberry reduction, black cherry preserve, cassis, tobacco leaf, darkest chocolate, spice, black pepper, darkly toasted oak, black pepper and hard leather.

Special Note: Each bottle is beautifully wrapped in gold wire (see our photo), giving the wine an impressive and classy look.

Very highly recommended!

Here’s what the wine press has to say:

90 points - Wine Spectator - “Dried cherry, licorice, tobacco and tea flavors mingle in this maturing red. The texture is round and polished, with a light grip and bright, orange peel acidity. Harmonious and still vibrant.”

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Wine & Spirits - “A mature gran reserva, this has fragrant cedar and cigar box notes when first poured, bright and sunny, ready to light up a lamb chop. It turns smooth and Porty with air…“