Campo Viejo, “Viña Alcorta” Rioja Reserva Cheap

Campo Viejo, “Viña Alcorta” Rioja Reserva

Today is bittersweet for us because it marks the end of our four-month-long odyssey into old Spanish reds. If you’ve previously missed them, here’s a one-sentence recap: Back in January, we secured a cellar-direct trove of old Tempranillo cuvées and have been offering them out in small tranches ever since.

We’ve featured some of Spain’s greatest names—La Rioja Alta, Pesquera, Riojanas—and dusted off wines no younger than 25 years and as old as 70! With today’s final offering, we’re coming full circle by bookending this journey with yet another exquisite 1994 Rioja Reserva. It’s not by accident: We planned this because it’s a phenomenal vintage—among the finest in 100 years of recorded Riojan history—and it comes in under $50. Given that many antique Riojas can leap past the $100 threshold in a hurry, we’re delighted to share extraordinary values such as this. As always, this was stored to perfection in Spain prior to arriving in our temperature-controlled warehouse at the start of the year. Grab up to six bottles while it lasts.

While Campo Viejo doesn’t breathe the historic air of Rioja’s treasured centenarian bodegas—it was only founded in 1959—its presence reverberates around the globe. This is one of the most powerful brands in all of Rioja but today’s specific cuvée, “Viña Alcorta” won’t be found among it. This takes its name from Juan Alcorta, an immensely successful Spanish industrialist who ran many ventures in the late 20th century, one of which was Campo Viejo. 

This 1994 Reserva comes from Alcorta’s estate-owned Tempranillo vines in the famed Rioja Alta subzone. It aged in a combination of French and American oak for no less than 18 months. Upon bottling, the wine matured further prior to its initial release in 1997. But not this parcel: A collector in Northern Spain purchased and buried it in his private cellar for the next two decades before it was carefully inspected, packed up, and shipped our way.

Although the label won’t win any aesthetic-based awards, the 28-year-old Tempranillo delivers a deeply rewarding experience. In a Bordeaux stem, it fills the senses with beautifully polished and lively aromas of sandalwood, black cherry skin, red plum, redcurrant, cedar, vanilla bean, tobacco, and vintage leather. The palate fills out with impressively ripe and supple flavors of red and black berries that blend into a savory core of dusty herbs and licorice. While it’s in a prime drinking window, it’ll easily retain verve and polish throughout the next 5+ years. Cheers!