Vina Real Reserva Especial 1949 CVNE

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Robert Parker (92)

I've been lucky enough to have encountered the magnificent 1949 Viña Real Reserva Especial on a couple of occasions. That year the People's Republic of China was founded, while Germany split into two countries and NATO was created. George Orwell wrote the novel "1984." These old bottles are unpredictable and on previous occasions I've found very strong reduction. Even though the vintage was certainly excellent, at age sixty-something, there are no great vintages, only great bottles. Popular artists in that year included, Frank Sinatra, Doris Day, Frankie Laine and Vaughn Monroe. The top-grossing film in the U.S. was "Samson and Delilah." You have to dig deep to find a song that remains popular–or at least known–nowadays, perhaps "O Sole Mio," by Mario Lanza. The year saw a relatively long vegetative cycle (205 days). The wine was not bottled until June 1963, 14 years after the harvest! Unfortunately, this wine showed some evolution, with some toffee notes, and felt quite fragile, suffering in comparison with the 1947, 1954 or 1949. But overall, I think it was a surprising and different wine. Anticipated maturity: 2015-2025.

BOW (8)