The 2011 & 2012 Riscal have been showing up at our local Costco, marked down to $11.something. At that price, we’ve picked up a few. Based on what we’ve opened, it’s maybe a little dark and extracted, but I haven’t found it extraordinarily modern, and it’s been fine at the price as an inexpensive earthy/American-oaked red.
I probably wouldn’t put it with the best <$20 Rioja, myself. I’ve only had a few of the others mentioned above in recent years, but I remember good experiences with the LRA Alberdi, Marqués de Murrieta Reserva & C.V.N.E. Viña Real. Maybe my palate just isn’t too fussy when it comes to Rioja, but I’ve found far more hits than misses in this category.
My Costco had (maybe has) a lot of Cune Reserva and Vina Real Reserva for $10 and $12 at times, so I grabbed a few of each. Some have been corked, some decent, some just blah. I’m sitting on the rest to see if a bit of age improves them.
2009 Cubillo at about $22 has been really solid and seems like it will reward some time in the cellar but I’m finding it hard not to open them now.
You need to watch what those are. They started another label a few years ago and they’re dumping the cheaper stuff into it. It’s not necessarily bad wine, but it’s confusing. There’s a label with a script Cune on it - that’s the low end, even though they do a Gran Reserva. Those shouldn’t be too expensive and in good years, they’re OK. The Vina Real and the Imperial labels are the better ones.
Not sure what you mean by “script.” As near as I can tell the ones sold at Costco are the same label I’ve always seen - white with a diagonal script. Looking on CT I see mainly that label, but one picture of a black label with a small, script “Cune” through the crest which I’ve never seen before. These are not that. The Vina Real are the standard label with red horizontal script on white. Both the Cune reserva and Vina Real reserva are what is shown on the website.
Yes. I suppose only they can tell us whether that change is successful but it is certainly confusing whether or not you are a geek about your wines.
I only read the last two pages but a very nice option under $30 is the Bodegas Beronia Rioja Gran Reserva. It’s quite age worthy and very good considering the price range.
My local (Boca Raton) Costco has been selling the 2015 Bodegas Roda Rioja Sela for $19. Have opened a couple and really enjoyed, but going to let the rest age a bit. We tasted at the winery last fall on a trip to Spain, which is why the bottling caught my attention (our Costco generally has a terrible wine selection).
Thanks Greg, the top one is what Costco sells. I think it was $12 so probably no complaint, but perhaps that explains my mixed results. They’ve also had the Vina Real reserva for the same price. I don’t know that I’ll be rebuying either but did grab a few of each (all 2012) so I’ll be able to see how they develop. Can you describe the style difference between the Vina Real and the standard?
Imperial is usually mostly Tempranillo, with some Graciano, Mazuelo, and Viura. Grapes are mostly from Rioja Alta. AFIK it never included Garnacha. The Graciano and Mazuelo tend to make it a bit leaner. It’s mostly fruit from Rioja Alta.
Viña Real is mostly Tempranillo, with lesser amounts of other varieties, including Mazuelo, but it usually had a good slug of Garnacha, sometimes as much as 40%. Grapes are from Rioja Alavesa.
They are from different wineries, with different blends. Rioja Alavesa is a wetter region, although both are Atlantic type climates. Rioja Alta has higher elevation and as a general rule, but not always obvious, the Imperial is more structured whereas the VR tends to be lighter and more aromatic. Both age wonderfully though, and with time, the Tempranillo funk dominates the nose.
Sadly, I was underwhelmed by a sound 2010 Vina Real ‘Reserva’ [Rioja] over a couple of nights. According to the back label, it’s hand harvested from Laguardia and Alciego vineyards, getting 18 mos in wood, and then the same amount of time in bottle before release. For my tastes, there is a lot of balsalmic and resin notes on the nose. On the palate, I find more saline/savory notes than fruity ones. 13.5% abv. I felt like the longer the bottle was open, the more the tannins started showing a raspy, spiky side. I’ve got another bottle, so hopefully that one will show better. A recent 2004 VR GR gives one faith in what this house can do, when everything comes together. I’d give this a B, an ‘ehh’ value at $22 somewhat after release.
I bought a bunch of VR Reserva and the normal Cune Reserva at Costco for $10 or $12 each a few years ago and they’ve been highly variable. Some sound and others advanced. Have one or two of each left I believe.
I don’t see this Bodega as often any more, but the 2012 Marques de Caceres ‘Gran Reserva’ [Rioja] is a large production, well distributed (usually), good but not great Rioja that has marched up in price over the years. Once upon a time Emile Peynaud had made this house into a standout (the 1970 which I’ve never tasted is regarded very highly) but nowadays it’s living off the the branding and network effects. It’s ruby hued, medium bodied, 14.5%, new French oak treated, and all things considered not an impressive GR. My prior comment still rings true. Dropping my assessment to a B at age 12. There are lots of fabulous $20 Rioja out here, but they’ll be harder to find than MdC.
sorry flag on the play - while this may have once been purchased for under twenty American dollars, aging it for 12 years adds a cost of capital premium which puts this outside the requirements (and certainly spirit!) of this thread. However thanks for the check-in and note, and I agree these are still great value wines.
Eh, the 2012 vintage is currently available for $28. Given that the original $20 limit was made in 2012 dollars, which is roughly 27.36 in 2024 dollars, I don’t think is outside the spirit of this thread in any way.
I generally would not / do not buy MdC unless it’s some kind of insane deal…but it’s a wine that fans of the region should at least be familiar with. It helps calibrate what one gets with their acquisition dollar, and effort (this bodega is everywhere, which only 3-6 houses, can be relied on)
Kirkland’s reserva is made by Vina Eguia, a legacy Pernod Ricard property, over as many vintages as I can recall. It’s solid, but not to my taste, but seems to sell through easily each cycle.
At least on the West Coast, and perhaps NY/NJ regions, there seems to be more direct imports of differentiated Rioja than I recall a generation ago. Grab a Penin Guide - a local Spanish ratings/review book - and go to town. English (and other language) versions are readily available. Even slightly older copies won’t be poor guideposts. I would note that the Penin ‘taste’ - it’s a committee - tends to run more Jose Ordonez than John Gilman. Still, all the cost/effort to get Rioja over to the US tends to be a good filter, making it safer to blindly buy the DOCa here than abroad.
