In Bond Fine Wine. 2022 Telmo Rodriguez Yjar, Rioja Alavesa, Rioja, Spain, Spain. Red spain - red in 3x75cl. Top critic score: 98/100 (JA). Drinking window: 2026+. Sold in bond by Albany Vintners, independent fine wine merchants.
Joaquin Hidalgo (JHi) — 96/100 · Vinous.com · Drink 2026 - 2045
The 2022 Yjar was aged roughly 30 months in foudres and barrels of varying sizes. Comprising Tempranillo, Garnacha, Graciano and other varieties from an old bush-trained vineyard in Labastida, it offers a complex, nuanced nose of cherry, dried flowers, balsamic tones, delicate oak and subtle blackberry. On the palate, it achieves a rare equilibrium between intensity and finesse, finishing long wi…
James Suckling (JS) — 98/100 · JamesSuckling.com · Drink 2026+
Dark berries, blueberries, dried flowers and aromatic herbs. This has the precise tannins characteristic of the place, focused and chalky with a saline touch, enticing. Chalky, with fruit. Saline on the finish. Drink now. (Jacobo García Andrade)
Luis Gutiérrez (LG) — 97/100 · Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com · Drink 2027 - 2037
The 2022 Yjar comes from a warm and dry year and was made with grapes from old vines planted with a massal selection of Tempranillo, Garnacha, Graciano and others. It fermented in small open-top oak vats with indigenous yeasts and matured in foudres and barrels of different sizes for 30 months. It's surprisingly fine and elegant, not showing any heat or ripeness, coming through as very harmonious…