Campo Viejo 1961 Gran Reserva

Wine: Campo Viejo 1961 Gran Reserva
Winery: Bodegas Campo Viejo (Logroño, La Rioja)
Appellation / Zone: D.O.Ca. Rioja
Varietals: 80% Tempranillo, 20% Garnacha, Mazuelo, and Graciano.
ABV: — (Not specified)

Winemaking

Grapes selected from various plots across Rioja Alta. The wine remained for 18 months in old wooden vats to complete malolactic fermentation and stabilize before being racked into barrels. It was aged for 36 to 48 months in used 225-liter American oak barrels, with two manual rackings performed each year. Bottled between June 1967 and February 1968. A minimum of 3 years of bottle aging in the winery’s cellars prior to its commercial release.

 

Tasting Notes

 

Appearance: Brownish-ruby color with medium-low depth; very clear and clean, albeit with a very fine sediment at the base of the bottle. Featuring orange reflections.

 

Nose: Good intensity. Initially filled with Riojan classicism in a recognizable style—very "Campo Viejo"—making the most of a significant dose of sweet spices and vanilla. It unfolds effortlessly: stable notes, reduced red fruit, orange peel, wine-soaked staves, and old leather. It offers everything we have come to expect from this winery, without surprises; calm, mature, and full. As it takes in air, it acquires an elegant reductive nuance while gradually losing intensity. Perhaps slightly fatigued by the years.

 

Palate: Slender and fresh on the palate. Settled and integral, with polished tannins and fine bitter notes. It is a pleasure to drink: round and savory, though one cannot demand much more from it at this stage. This was the first vintage for Campo Viejo, and it continues to maintain a good level, though it is now urgently calling to be consumed.

 

Commentary

The 1961 Gran Reserva stands as a historic milestone for Campo Viejo, marking its debut vintage with remarkable dignity. While it shows signs of the inevitable wear of six decades—becoming more fragile upon aeration—it still preserves the core identity of traditional Rioja. A wine of great character and poise that has reached its twilight in a state of graceful integrity.

 

Personal Score: 90
Tasting Group Average: 90