Artadi Vina El Pison 1998

From a single parcel of 1945-planted vines on the chalky soils of Laguardia, this 1998 El Pisón is built for the long haul. The nose is the wine's calling card: red cherry, violet, dark chocolate and a thread of mustard seed and fresh herbs, precise, deeply perfumed, unmistakably this vineyard. In the mouth it's a different proposition entirely. The fruit is compressed behind firm, unyielding structure, tightly-knit and reluctant to show its hand. The finish is austere but long, trailing off with quiet insistence. The aromatic purity and underlying class are there, enough to put it in the conversation with the '98 Grandes Añadas, but this needs significant cellar time before it begins to open up.