2011 R. Lopez de Heredia Vina Bosconia Rioja Reserva 750 ml

Lopez de Heredia is THE bastion of tradition and patience in Rioja. It is to Rioja what Vega Sicilia is to Ribera del Duero. All wines are estate-grown and bottled, and Reservas are aged like Gran Reservas. The wines—both whites and reds—can cellar for decades, thanks to exacting craftsmanship.

After years of asking, the 2011 represents our first ever allocation of Lopez de Heredia’s Viña Bosconia Reserva—and we get to start with a 95-point star from one of the most approachable Rioja vintages in a decade. Bosconia is the richest, roundest wine in the Lopez lineup, combining plummy fruit with a seductive earthiness.

In the late 19th century, Rafael López de Heredia y Landeta, the founder of the company, sought to craft something he called "Supreme Rioja.” In practice this means that every aspect of production gets executed with exacting care: Only the best grapes make it into the fermenter, and the wines are fastidiously racked, bottled only when ready, and enclosed with only the highest-quality corks. They’re also released much later than those of their neighbors. Today, the fourth generation—Maria José, Mercedes, and Julio César—run the winery with the same passion and attention to detail as their forebears.

First planted by the great-grandfather of the current generation, Viña Bosconia is a single site planted near the Ebro river, barely a half mile from the winery itself. The vines average over 40 years of age, which helps give superb concentration to the grapes. Compared to the other bottlings in the lineup, Bosconia is revered for rich, soft fruit and power—it’s more Mouton than Haut-Brion. The wine is typically about 80% Tempranillo, with the rest Garnacha, Graciano, and Mazuelo.