The Winery: Campo Viejo
The Wine: 2001 Gran Reserva Rioja
The Price: $16.44 at Safeway marked down from $23.49.
Campo Viejo has done a nice job of creating a website that gives a lot of information about their winery. I really appreciate that. They've put a lot of thought into their website. My only real complaint is that it was difficult to find, and it was down when I finally did find it.
If you read my review of Marqués de Cáceres 2001 Reserva Rioja you'll recall that the wines of Spain are named for the region rather than the varietal. The Rioja region is in norther Spain, and wines tend to be stronger and have a higher content of tannins. The Gran Reserva designation signifies the barrel aging time. A wine labeled Crianza will be a younger wine, Reserva will have been aged longer than a Crianza, and a Gran Reserva will have been barrel aged the longest. The Campo Viejo Gran Reserva is aged in oak for 24 months, followed by 36 months of bottle aging.
This wine is deep red in color and has aromas of cherry, prune, blackberry and oak. It has flavors of berry and cherry with a bit of a bite on the finish. This wine is good now, but it could really use another couple of years of aging. I like it enough that I intend on picking up a few more bottles while it's still on sale.
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