CVNE, Viña Real Gran Reserva, Rioja, Spain, 1968

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Overview of the Wine
Cvne, is situated in Rioja in the traditional neighborhood of the station, where the oldest wineries of Rioja Alta established themselves, for the main reason of transporting their goods to the port of Bilbao.

In 1879, two brothers decided to set up a business in the recently flourishing trade of the wine business. C.V.N.E., Compañía Vinicola del Norte de España (The Northern Spanish Wine Company) or la Cuné, as it is commonly known in Haro, was created. This cellar still reflects the origins of the company and is kept in the traditional neighborhood of the Haro station.

The Cune winery in Haro, is made up of a group of buildings, mostly from the 19th century and arranged around a courtyard surrounded by pavilions for the purpose of wine production, aging, and bottling.

Grape / Blend
Tempranillo and Garnacha

Origin
Rioja, Spain

Winemaker's Tasting Notes
The 1968 Viña Real Gran Reserva was harvested after the May student riots in France, the year that Martin Luther King and Bobby Kennedy were killed and Stanley Kubrick directed “2001: A Space Odyssey.” It was a short crop for Viña Real, but of excellent quality. The vegetative cycle was long, 210 days. The wine was fermented in cement vats and aged in used American oak barriques until bottling in May 1974, at the same time as the 1966. A great classical wine, the Rioja prototype, with red fruit (think Garnacha!), leather, spices and smoke. Classical? You bet! “Lady Madonna,” “Jumping Jack Flash,” (“Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay,” “What a Wonderful World” and “Hey Jude”! They are all as classic as this Rioja, which is richly balsamic, fine, elegant and light in the palate, but with subtle energy and very tasty umami-like flavors. Mmm! Anticipated maturity: 2015-2025.

94+ Points - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

Product size: 750ml