WTN: 1994 Campillo Gran Reserva Rioja

Dan had this unique beauty on sale at Back Room Wines in Napa.

Decanted and served with chicken skewers and potatoes and a certain long thin Spring vegetable that really doesn't go with wine. Until it opened, a little sharp. Definitely some oak on the nose, but said oak is fully integrated into the fruit, tannins, and acidity. Tannins are present but resolved. Fantastic acidity-very refreshing "sour cherry" fruit character. A little richer and smoother than the Tondonia from the other night. Some excellent savory characterics on the finish. Can't really think of a better wine for chargrilled veggies and chicken! Outstanding.

I'm eager to be educated on THIS side of Rioja. I really enjoy the sour cherry, high acid type of wine-some Gamays, some hippy organic French wines, etc. We were all impressed by how lively this 14 year old wine has-and how much balanaced fruit.

Any other ideas?

Hi Brian!

Thanks for the note - I have another bottle of this in the cellar, I quite enjoyed the wine some time ago:

1994 Bodegas Campillo Rioja Gran Reserva - Spain, La Rioja, Rioja (5/22/2005)
Ligth colour with slight bricking. Nose of red currant and oak. Sweet fruit and a bit of wood on the palate. Good acidity. Another note of wood in the medium long finish that ends with a slight bitterness. Well balanced and good wine. Will keep for some years. For me not as good as the CVNE Vina Real Reserva '95 and thus a bit overpriced.

Regards, Robert

Thank you for the note.

I'm a fan of Rioja wines. We had just returned from a quick visit to the Rioja Alta and Alavesa regions, and I remember driving by the beautiful Campillo bodega by the lovely town of Laguardia. It is but one of the many breathtaking winery grounds in the region and I can't wait to go back. I also look forward to being educated on the fabled wines from this region.

One of my takeaway is how food-friendly and quite versatile the red wines that I've sampled were. Within our short visit, my preference have gravitated to liking wines that I learned were produced within the traditional process. I've sampled and bought wines produced by Lopez de Heredia, Muga and Rioja Alta. I continue to have a lot of fun sampling their wines and will post notes on these soon.

By the way, when I looked up the Campillo website, I noticed that the 1994 Gran Reserva were made with 100% Tempranillo. During my winery visits, I recall that the producers I visited had a small, say about 15% to 20%, amount of Garnacha, Mazuela and/or Graciano grapes mixed in in their wines. Perhaps somebody here can comment on the nuances of these varietals.

Ramon

Thanks, Ramon. As I mentioned, I enjoyed a 1998 Lopez de H Tondonia last month...maybe even a little bit more than the Campillo. I will look out for the Muga and the Rioja Alta!

I agree on the food friendliness-this wine accompanied the chicken skewers so well that, although we were all a bit wined out, the bottle disappeared quickly by the end of the night.