The flagship wines of this bodega are their 904 and 890 Gran Reservas. These wines spend 8-10 years in cask and are then bottle aged even longer. They are beautifully made wines with a complexity not unlike a mature vintage of a top class Bordeaux Graves. The newest releases from Rioja Alta include some good wines, although I was somewhat disappointed in the 1991 and 1993 Vina Arana Reserva. The 1989 Gran Reserva 904 exhibits a dark garnet color, as well as a wood smoke, burning embers, charcoal, lead pencil, sweet strawberry and cherry-scented nose with cedar, tobacco, and a remarkable Graves-like character. Complex, elegant, savory, subtle, yet layered flavors never achieve much weight, but they deliver considerable intensity and complexity. This wine should continue to drink well for another decade. The two newest releases of the flagship, traditionally made Riojas are the 1989 Gran Reserva 904 and 1982 Gran Reserva 890. These examples are the antithesis of modern day, deep purple-colored, grapy, fat, rich wines. They are the epitome of old-style Riojas that achieve their complexity from delicacy, subtlety, and exceptional aromatics. Neither of these offerings will cut a weighty impression on the palate, but aromatically, both are knock-outs. Moreover, their flavors are beautifully balanced, with no aggressiveness. Readers must recognize that this traditionally run firm tends to make wines that have spent considerable time in oak, and are much lighter-colored, more mature, and clearly ready to drink when released. The antithesis of modern-day fruit and oak-driven wines, they are all characterized by soft, tobacco, cedary, cigar-box-scented noses, with sweet fruit, and light garnet/ruby colors with amber edges. However, do not judge these offerings by their feeble colors, as they are very aromatic, and their flavors are nuanced and complex. Importer: A Christopher Cannan Selection, Europvin USA, Watertown, MA; tel. (617) 924-7620

Traditional Rioja, the delicate cherry and orange-peel scents mingle with those brought on by long aging in American oak-vanilla, cinnamon, cream, even coconut. A lovely, mature drink.——W.E.(11/15/1999)—— 92