Home
Wine
Wine Regions
Western Europe
Spain
Northern Spain
Ebro River Valley
Rioja

2004 and 2005 Rioja: Panel tasting results

This tasting of two excellent vintages almost two decades on proves that great Rioja wines are made to be enjoyed for many more years to come.

By Pedro Ballesteros Torres MW

last updated 12 December 2023

in Tastings

MEMBER EXCLUSIVE

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

Rioja_Bottles — (Image credit: Credit Unknown)

Facebook
X
Pinterest

Share this article

Join the conversation

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Subscribe to our newsletter

Pedro Ballesteros Torres MW, Sarah Jane Evans MW and Pierre Mansour tasted 53 wines with 8 Outstanding and 37 Highly recommended.

2004 and 2005 Rioja: panel tasting scores

53 wines tasted

Exceptional 0

Outstanding 8

Highly recommended 37

Recommended 7

Commended 1

Decanter newsletter

Get our daily fine wine reviews, latest wine ratings, news and travel guides delivered straight to your inbox.

Contact me with news and offers from other Future brandsReceive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors

By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

Fair 0

Poor 0

Entry criteria: producers and UK agents were invited to submit red wines from the 2004 and 2005 vintages only, with any Rioja classification of gran reserva, reserva, crianza or genérico permitted

We had high expectations of this tasting. It is well known that great Rioja shows its full potential after extended ageing in the bottle, and 2004 and 2005 are both excellent vintages.

The 2004 vintage is the more irregular of the two. It was the last late vintage (from the following year onwards all good vintages have been quite early, likely due to climate change), and some areas performed much better than others. Fruit selection and good vineyard siting were crucial factors, but those who worked well got top wines.

Scroll down to see tasting notes and scores from the 2004 and 2005 Rioja panel tasting

The 2005 vintage was easier – practically perfect in terms of ripeness and grape health, with no botrytis. Yields and total quantities were similar for both vintages. You would therefore expect to see a higher number of 2005s at the top in this tasting, but it was not the case. With four Outstanding wines apiece, both vintages performed very well.

Turning to drinkability, the best wines from these vintages should be starting to open up and show extra complexity only now, while those that are not up to the challenge of time will be showing signs of decline. Some wines will be at their peak now, whereas others should be giving good indications of their capacity to improve further with extended ageing.

Having been lucky enough to taste many very old Riojas, I would bet on some wines from these vintages still drinking well for many more years, a few beyond my lifetime.

These two vintages came at a time when producers were ready to reach top quality in the vineyard and in the bodega, but the wines were released during a difficult period, most of them between 2009 and 2014, when the financial crisis was hitting hard. Prices for some of them have since increased, and should climb higher with time – providing good opportunities for investment.

Modern vs. traditional

This panel tasting was also an interesting exercise in checking which of the mainstream styles would get the upper hand in the long run. Would the classic, long-ageing gran reserva wines get better overall results than the so-called modern-style Riojas, which tend to have shorter oak ageing and greater fruit intensity?

See all 53 wines from the 2004 and 2005 Rioja panel tasting

I can report that both styles did very well. They are developing in different ways – the modern styles are deep and granular, while the traditional styles are silky and complex.

When it comes to grape varieties, all of the top-scoring wines are Tempranillo or Tempranillo-based blends. We need to wait for the next decade to find the great wines made from Garnacha, Graciano and others.

It is worth pointing out that in a tasting of wines heading for the end of their second decade, there will be some bottles that aren’t in pristine condition, and these wines will therefore not perform so well.

Despite that, the overall results of this tasting were very encouraging: out of 53 samples, there were eight wines scoring 95 or above, with five more scoring 94, on the verge of the Outstanding level. Having a quarter of the wines tasted performing so well is testament to the overall high quality across these two vintages.

2004 and 2005 Rioja panel tasting scores

The judges

Pedro Ballesteros Torres MW is a widely published wine journalist, educator and judge. He holds a degree in agronomical engineering and a Masters in viticulture and oenology, is a national expert for Spain at the OIV organisation and a DWWA joint Regional Chair for Spain.

Sarah Jane Evans MW is a Decanter contributing editor and Co-Chair of the Decanter World Wine Awards. Her latest book The Wines of Central and Southern Spain is set for release in early 2024.

Pierre Mansour is director of wine at The Wine Society, where he has worked for 23 years. Starting out with merchant Berry Bros & Rudd, he joined The Wine Society in 2000, moved into buying after four years and has been buying The Society’s Spanish wines since 2008.

Albariño beyond Iberia: panel tasting results
Priorat red wines: panel tasting results
Spanish indigenous reds: panel tasting results

Topics

Magazine Panel Tasting

Bodegas Riojanas, Viña Albina Gran Reserva, Rioja, Alta 2004

My wines

A blend of 80% Tempranillo, 15% Manzuelo and 5% Graciano from low-yielding vineyards in Rioja Alta. Winemaking incorporated the use of micro-oxygenations between alcoholic and...

2004

Northern SpainSpain

Bodegas RiojanasRioja

2004 and 2005 Rioja: panel tasting scores

Scroll down to see tasting notes and scores from the 2004 and 2005 Rioja panel tasting

Modern vs. traditional

See all 53 wines from the 2004 and 2005 Rioja panel tasting

2004 and 2005 Rioja panel tasting scores

The judges

Related articles

Bodegas Riojanas, Viña Albina Gran Reserva, Rioja, Alta 2004

Bodegas Pujanza, Pujanza, Rioja, Northern Spain, Spain, 2004

Bodegas Urbina, Gran Reserva Especial, Rioja, 2004

Bodegas Valdemar, Edición Limitada, Rioja, 2004

Bodegas Riojanas, Viña Albina Gran Reserva, Rioja, Alta, 2005

La Rioja Alta, Viña Ardanza Reserva, Rioja, Alta, 2005

La Rioja Alta, Gran Reserva 904, Rioja, Alta, 2005

Bodegas Ramón Bilbao, Mirto, Rioja, Alta, 2005

Bodegas Remírez de Ganuza, Rioja, Northern Spain, 2004

Bodegas Hermanos Peciña, Chobeo de Pecina, Rioja, Alta, 2005

Bodegas Martínez Lacuesta, Campeador, Rioja, Alta, 2005

Bodegas Ramón Bilbao, Rioja, Alta, 2005

Rioja Vega, Gran Reserva Añadas Míticas, Rioja, 2005

Bodegas Riojanas, Monte Real Gran Reserva, Rioja, Alta, 2004

Bodegas Ramón Bilbao, Mirto, Rioja, Alta, 2004

Bodegas de la Marquesa, Valserrano Finca Monteviejo, Rioja 2005

Bodegas Remírez de Ganuza, Rioja, Northern Spain, 2005

Roda, Roda 1 Reserva, Rioja, Northern Spain, Spain, 2005

Bodegas Santalba, Nabot, Rioja, Alta, Northern Spain, 2005

Vinedos y Bodegas Sierra Cantabria, El Puntido, Rioja 2005

Bodegas Altanza, Lealtanza Artistas Españoles Dali, Rioja 2004

Bodegas Bilbaínas, Rioja, Northern Spain, Spain, 2004

Bodegas de la Marquesa, Valserrano Gran Reserva, Rioja 2004

Faustino, Gran Faustino Gran Reserva, Rioja, 2004

Bodega Classica, Classica Hacienda López de Haro, Rioja 2004

Bodegas Valdemar, Edición Limitada, Rioja, 2005

Bodegas Bilbaínas, Rioja, Northern Spain, Spain, 2005

Cosme Palacio, Glorioso Gran Reserva, Rioja, Alavesa, 2005

Señorío de P. Pecina, Crianza, Rioja, Alta, 2005