Tasting Notes & Reviews:
"Lots of mushroom and walnut aromas with plum and leather, too. It’s full-bodied, but very soft and creamy-textured with lots of old wood, mushroom and ripe fruit on the finish. Some chocolate and hazelnut. Complex and gorgeous. Drink or hold." 96/100 James Suckling, Oct20
"Limpid ruby-red. Oak-spiced cherry, black raspberry, candied rose, spicecake and coconut aromas show very good definition and pick up tobacco and licorice notes as the wine opens up. Smooth and appealingly sweet, offering sappy cherry cola, fruitcake, coconut and floral pastille flavors complemented by an earthy undertone. Shows very good energy and floral lift on a long, smoky finish framed by velvety, well-knit tannins." 93/100, Josh Reynolds, Vinous, Apr2021
"94% Tempranillo from Las Cuevas, El Palo and Las Monjas vineyards in Rodezno plus 6% Graciano from the Montecillo estate in Fuenmayor which was picked a full 20 days after the Tempranillo. 19-day fermentation in tank and then in April, after the malo, selected components were put into house-coopered American oak barrels with an average age of 4.5 years for three years with racking every six months. The final blend was bottle in June 2018 with a pH of 3.55. A successor to Viña Arana's first Gran Reserva, the 2012, launched last year. Dark garnet. The medium-intense nose an amalgam of balsam, spice and tobacco leaf. Good acidity with the tannins almost imperceptible. Savoury and well balanced. Medium persistence and well-mannered rather than a blockbuster." 16.5/20, Jancis Robinson, Aug20
"The aim with the 2014 Viña Arana Gran Reserva is to find a new Gran Reserva style that combines freshness and joy with intensity, sophistication and aging potential through a blend of Tempranillo with 6% Graciano that matured in American oak barrels for three years with rackings every six months. 2014 was a weaker year in the region, and the wine shows it and feels less vivacious than the 2015 Viña Alberdi. It has medium ripeness and abundant spicy and smoky notes and a medium-bodied palate with a soft texture that points at a wine for shorter-term consumption than the rest of the portfolio or other vintages from this cuvée. 80,000 bottles produced. It was bottled in June 2018." 90/100, Luis Gutierrez, Robert Parker, Oct 20
"Lots of mushroom and walnut aromas with plum and leather, too. It’s full-bodied, but very soft and creamy-textured with lots of old wood, mushroom and ripe fruit on the finish. Some chocolate and hazelnut. Complex and gorgeous. Drink or hold." 96/100 James Suckling, Oct20
"Limpid ruby-red. Oak-spiced cherry, black raspberry, candied rose, spicecake and coconut aromas show very good definition and pick up tobacco and licorice notes as the wine opens up. Smooth and appealingly sweet, offering sappy cherry cola, fruitcake, coconut and floral pastille flavors complemented by an earthy undertone. Shows very good energy and floral lift on a long, smoky finish framed by velvety, well-knit tannins." 93/100, Josh Reynolds, Vinous, Apr2021
"94% Tempranillo from Las Cuevas, El Palo and Las Monjas vineyards in Rodezno plus 6% Graciano from the Montecillo estate in Fuenmayor which was picked a full 20 days after the Tempranillo. 19-day fermentation in tank and then in April, after the malo, selected components were put into house-coopered American oak barrels with an average age of 4.5 years for three years with racking every six months. The final blend was bottle in June 2018 with a pH of 3.55. A successor to Viña Arana's first Gran Reserva, the 2012, launched last year. Dark garnet. The medium-intense nose an amalgam of balsam, spice and tobacco leaf. Good acidity with the tannins almost imperceptible. Savoury and well balanced. Medium persistence and well-mannered rather than a blockbuster." 16.5/20, Jancis Robinson, Aug20
"The aim with the 2014 Viña Arana Gran Reserva is to find a new Gran Reserva style that combines freshness and joy with intensity, sophistication and aging potential through a blend of Tempranillo with 6% Graciano that matured in American oak barrels for three years with rackings every six months. 2014 was a weaker year in the region, and the wine shows it and feels less vivacious than the 2015 Viña Alberdi. It has medium ripeness and abundant spicy and smoky notes and a medium-bodied palate with a soft texture that points at a wine for shorter-term consumption than the rest of the portfolio or other vintages from this cuvée. 80,000 bottles produced. It was bottled in June 2018." 90/100, Luis Gutierrez, Robert Parker, Oct 20