The 2001 La Cueva del Contador (100% Tempranillo) was aged in French oak prior to being bottled unfined and unfiltered. Its deep ruby/purple color is accompanied by a rich perfume of berry fruit, spice box, new saddle leather, cigar smoke, and earth. Medium to full-bodied, rich, and concentrated, it may be slightly too muscular and extracted for its own good, but it is impressively pure, rich, and, hopefully, loaded with potential. The tannin needs to become better integrated, so give it 2-3 more years of cellaring, and drink it over the following 10-12 years. There is no doubt that Benjamin Romeo is a perfectionist when it comes to winemaking. He worked at Artadi between 1985 and 2000, and now has his own small project where he makes limited quantities of super-expensive, but also high quality, limited production Rioja.Importer: Jorge Ordonez, Fine Estates from Spain, Dedham, MA; tel. (781) 461-5767

The 2001 La Cueva del Contador has an intriguing bouquet with blackberry, Italian cured meat, chalk and Morello: halfway between primary and secondary aromas. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins and a palpable “juicy” core of blueberry and cassis fruit that appears to have barely aged. It is fresh and vibrant, almost Graves-like on the finish, with hints of black olive on the aftertaste. This still has a decade ahead of it, possibly more. Drink now-2020. One of the most memorable days in Rioja was spending an afternoon in the company of the inimitable Benjamin Romeo, the tour de force behind Bodega Contador. We flitted from one patch of twisted ancient vines to another, mainly around the medieval village of San Vincente, Romeo again and again propounding his mantra that terroir creates great wine. This involved one perilous drive through vegetation as thick as the Amazon until the 4x4 exited into a parcel of century-old, gnarly Tempranillo vines (upon which he mentioned that they were far more accessible on foot). Since leaving Artadi in 2000, he has gradually acquired around 80 parcels of old vine material, vinifying the fruit in a simple, modern, efficient winery, inaugurated in 2007, a facility that places functionality over aesthetic charms. Benjamin himself comes across as an intense, passionate, uncompromising winemaker, a little distant and apprehensive at first, but warming to someone who is patently interested in terroir. Bodega Contador is certainly a slick operation, fastidious down to the last detail, resulting in a set of sumptuous, silky smooth, curvaceous Rioja wines that are seductive, yet deserve considerable cellaring. Moving on to the 2010s, readers should note that these were bottled a week prior to my tasting them. Although Romeo’s name is synonymous with “modern” Rioja, he told me that he wished to make a classical wine for his mother, whom he described as a “classical woman” and fancied a “change of scene.” Importer: Eric Solomon, European Cellars, Charlotte, NC; tel. (704) 358-1565