Winemaker Notes
Very deep red, with a scarlet rim. On the nose, minerals and vanilla. Hints of raisins and dark chocolate. Power and intensity with disarming elegance on the palate.
Goes well with beef, pork, game based stews and rice dishes.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
One of the finest examples of Garnacha in the country, Aquilon is made from 60- to 100-year-old bush-trained vines. It offers bold aromas of purple plum, black tea, olive paste and fenel pollen. It is full on the palate and has a sense of earthiness underlying cassis, blackberry, aniseed and mocha flavors. Simultaneously powerful and elegant, there is an incredible sense of tension between soft acidity and lavish tannins. Drink through 2038.
Cellar Selection -
Wine Spectator
A lovely combination of ripe fruit and woodsy spice notes leads on the nose and continues on the palate, revealing layers of baked black cherry, plum, licorice and espresso flavors alongside fern, moss, smoke and iron accents. A graceful, supple red, with a creamy edge to the sculpted tannins as they emerge to firm the spiced finish. Drink now through 2030.
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James Suckling
This shows aromas of graphite, dark fruit, prunes and bark. Full-bodied and extraordinarily concentrated, with good freshness, lots of dark chocolate and plenty of mouth-coating tannins. Despite being such a massive wine, it is still capable of maintaining a sense of balance. For fans of the style. Drink or hold.
Grenache thrives in any warm, Mediterranean climate where ample sunlight allows its clusters to achieve full phenolic ripeness. While Grenache's birthplace is Spain (there called Garnacha), today it is more recognized as the key player in the red blends of the Southern Rhône, namely Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Côtes du Rhône and its villages. Somm Secret—The Italian island of Sardinia produces bold, rustic, single varietal Grenache (there called Cannonau). California, Washington and Australia have achieved found success with Grenache, both flying solo and in blends.
Campo de Borja DO sits in the northwest province of Zaragoza (Aragon, Spain) south of Rioja and north of Cariñena. Since this area acquired DO status in the 1980s, it has gradually shown its own unique identity. Campo de Borja’s winegrowing history and heritage is rich in relation to Garnacha; the oldest vineyards in the DO date back to 1890. Furthermore, of the almost 4,000 hectares of this variety, more than 2,000 are between 30 and 50 years old.
Most production continues to be reds, and the number of crianzas and reservas is growing. Though less common, they produce white wines as well. Today, both red and rosé wines have won the respect of experts, and the intensely fruity, young red wines enjoy significant commercial success. The principal white grape varieties are Macabeo, Moscatel, Chardonnay, Garnacha Blanca, Sauvignon Blanc and Verdejo. The principal red grape varieties include Garnacha Tinta, Tempranillo, Syrah, Mazuela, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot.