Winery	Herederos Del Marqués de Riscal
Region	Rioja, Spain
Vintage	2003
Type	Red
Grape Varietals	Tempranillo, Graciano, Mazuelo
Retail Price	$36
Rating	8/10

What else can 3 guys - 1 bummer, 1 bored and 1 excited guy - do together on a monday night? How about a quick trip down to NTUC to pick up a bottle of wine and pack yourself half a roasted chicken top with roasted pork at your favourite hawker stall? That was exactly what happened, and mind you we had great fun and great treat.

Tonight we had decisively chosen a spanish wine having relished on our good old bachelor days when we spent the mid week boozing on spanish red. Back in those days we were whiskeys-converted. So nothing short of being strong, spicy and intense wine would satisfy our craving. Ya, that sounds like Italian wine. But you know, we weren't that exposed those days and our geography textbook says that if travel south away from France, you'll get to tango into Spain.

Back to sanity, our choice for Spanish's Rioja wine was not pure accidental. Since Rioja is the only region in Spain to be granted DOCa so far, our choice of Marqués de Riscal Reserva 2003 was a safe and conservative choice, which has no doubt brought the three of us loads of joy for the night.

Bright crimson, with a rim of lighter hue on the outlayer, the medium-bodied Marqués de Riscal Reserva 2003 exudes hints of vanilla and light cedar wood on the nose with a combination that strongly remminiscent the fragrance of famous 'Hong Zhao' chicken or Red glutinous rice wine chicken. A fine elegance of pure aromatic cherry and blue berry flavours lifted by a dollop of smooth butter cream was displayed that seem to gracefully brought the acidity and tannin to a soft round feminine grip. The finishing was strong and lingers on as if perpetually of ripe plum fruits and blackcurrant.

When paired with chicken rice and roasted pork that is oily and dominant of garlic, lemon grass and red chilli sauce, the Rioja wine stood staunchly against adversity to work harmoniously with the meat without being overwhelmed by the spicies.

All in all, we enjoyed ourself very much. Food was good and wine was fantastic to say the least. With racks of wine labels displayed in supermarkets these days grabbing your attention in prominence, its sometimes hard to choose sensibly a good wine amonst the distractions. This time, I must say we did a good job.

Tasting Notes:

• Bright crimson, with a rim of lighter hue on the outlayer, the medium-bodied Marqués de Riscal Reserva 2003 exudes hints of vanilla and light cedar wood on the nose with a combination that strongly remminiscent the fragrance of famous 'Hong Zhao' chicken or Red glutinous rice wine chicken. A fine elegance of pure aromatic cherry and blue berry flavours lifted by a dollop of smooth butter cream was displayed that seem to gracefully brought the acidity and tannin to a soft round feminine grip. The finishing was strong and lingers on as if perpetually of ripe plum fruits and blackcurrant.

Food Pairings:

• Tried and tested with chicken rice and roasted pork. Will work well with other white and red meat. But possibily not fish. 

Drinkability:

• Ready to drink

Available At:

• NTUC Fairprice  ($42) and Carrefour ($36)