Campo Viejo Reserva 2005, Rioja, Spain

I opened this wine this Christmas dinner with Mom and my grandmother.  Both of these ladies are avid white drinkers, so springing a Spanish red on them tonight was a bit of a risk.  We poured the wine while it was a little bit cold for my taste, at about 60 F.  I let our glasses sit for a second before I attempted to take a sniff.  The nose on the Campo Viejo didn't impress me initially.  It smelled more of tight alcohol and acidic berries than anything, which surprised me given that it only contains 13.5% alcohol.  It actually tasted much lighter and nicer than it smelled.

I stuck my nose in it again two glasses later though, and the berries and jammy smells had really blossomed.   Much prettier!  As you can probably infer (given that I mentioned I had 2+ glasses) the Campo Viejo was a hit.  The balanced, light, smooth wine pleased both me and my less adventurous relatives.  I do recommend letting this guy sit out for a second though.  My third glass was much tastier than my first.

Technical Info:

Varietal: 85% Tempranillo, 10% Graciano, 5% Mazuelo 

Alcohol: 13.8% 

Origin: Rioja, Spain

Price: $13.99 at Newflower Market

Rachel's Grade: B+  This wine is truly a great deal.  It is balanced, smooth, and pleasant for anybody to drink; a crowd pleaser.  For the more cultured palates, it's not anything extraordinary or complex, but who really cares about that?  For around $13 I challenge anybody to find a more solid Tempranillo.  Probably not happening.