WTN: Faustino I Rioja Gran Reserva 1964

Lockdown Wine #63. Pop and pour. Nice cork. I used the Durand on this, but I think it was probably recorked in the not too distant past. Brick at the edge, but still an opaque core. Nice nose. Dried herbs, grilled meat, touch of smoke, and still quite a bit of berry conserve fruit beneath that. Soft and very fine tannins, nice touch of acidity for backbone. Smoke is till there, medium-bodied. Impressive for the age. Dried herb and tobacco. Had this with an A5 Saga Wagyu steak with a ponzu dipping sauce and some Merlot wine salt. The ponzu was ok, but the wine salt really brought out the fruit in this - strawberry, and especially cherry. I was afraid it wouldn't stand up to the steak, but it did a pretty good job. Medium length, slightly strange, metallic finish. Not bad for 56 years, and I think it's got a couple of more years of life in it. I've had this at least 3 times before, and this is probably the youngest tasting bottle I've had. As a wine, good. As a 56 year old wine, excellent!