Rioja

Score

95

"The red blend 2023 Anza was produced with Tempranillo, Garnacha, Graciano, Malvasía, Calagraño, Viura and Moscatel grapes from the zones of Laguardia and Elvillar, produced in a fresh and direct style with no makeup. It fermented with some stems by plot and zones and matured in used 500-liter barrels and oak vats of different sizes for 12 months. They had 568 liters of rain in 2023, which also saw mild temperatures, save for a 12-day heat wave at the end of August, followed by a rainy September and October. The wine is clean, open, aromatic and nuanced. None of the reds show any aromatic influence from the wood. It has a contained 13.5% alcohol and a very balanced, medium-bodied and elegant palate, with very fine tannins. 21,000 bottles produced. It was bottled in December 2024."

Score

94

"I also tasted the 2022 Anza where he added the grapes of one more plot in Laguardia. The wine has his house style of elegance, subtleness and nuance; it's clean and precise and does not show any heat or oak. It's seamless, bright and velvety. Delicious. 23,420 bottles produced. It was bottled in September 2023."

Score

94+

"The 2021 Anza wants to show the typicity of Laguardia and Elvillar with freshness, precision and no makeup. It's a blend of grapes‡Tempranillo, Garnacha, Graciano, Malvas¡a, Calagra¤o, Viura and Moscatel‡from different vineyards that were fermented by plot with some full clusters and a significant amount of white grapes. It matured in 500-liter barrels and oak vats of different sizes. It has 13.5% alcohol and a little more depth and clout compared with the 2022, and it's fine-boned and has very elegant tannins. Precision, my friends. 21,000 bottles produced. It was bottled in December 2022."

Score

93

"Chalk, vibrant berries, hibiscus and wet stones. Rich in red cherry fruit and plums, but fresh, with a medium to full body and tight, fine-grained tannins. Long and structured. Drink or hold."

Score

92

"Diego Magaña started making a small bit of Rioja to augment his roster of excellent Bierzo wines when he found a few old vine parcels here in 2016. He makes both a regular and an Especial bottling of Rioja, with the standard bottling being crafted from vines that range from thirty to fifty plus years of age. The vineyard is planted to a field blend of primarily tempranillo, but also including small percentages of garnacha, graciano, mazuelo and viura, amongst others. His 2021 Rioja has blossomed nicely since I last had the pleasure to taste it a year ago, offering up a bouquet of raspberries, fruitcake, cigar smoke, a fine base of soil, garrigue, a touch of meatiness and a topnote of cedar. On the palate the wine is full-bodied, focused and youthfully complex, with a very good core of fruit, fine soil signature, ripe, chewy tannins and a long, vibrant and well balanced finish. This needs time in the cellar to soften, but once it is ready to drink, it will be excellent. 2033-2075+"

Score

92

Score

92

"The 2022 Anza is 87% Tempranillo with 13% Garnacha and Graciano from Laguardia and Elvillar in Rioja Alavesa. A young, purple-hued wine, it offers aromas of sour cherry and elder alongside blackberry and herbal notes. Dry, juicy and taut on the palate, the stemmy, reactive tannins define a crunchy mouthfeel, lasting with a flavorful finish. This is a cheerful Rioja red."