The 2004 El Vinculo, from a superior vintage, is purple-colored. It offers a more expressive nose and riper, sweeter fruit on the palate. The wine has excellent balance and length. Drink it over the next 5-7 years. Importer: Classical Wines, Seattle, WA.; tel. (206) 297-6713

Big and burly, with highly respectable aromas of ripe blackberry, toast and mint. Attractive plum and blackberry flavors follow, and as it passes from palate to finish the wine shows its depth and structure. A little stiff in terms of oak and tannin and kind of simple overall. Still, it’s a wine that indicates that La Mancha could finally be ready for the world stage.——M.S.(10/1/2008)—— 89