I reviewed this wine before, see below. CAUTION, cork of this wine has mould growing on the top, but it hasn’t penetrated into the bottle and has no effect on the quality of the wine, if washed off prior to opening. Last night, I decided to try this wine alongside Marques de Valcarlos Crianza 2005 (Feb 20/10 release, 146191) for comparison. This very aromatic, medium bodied, aged wine has pronounced cedar on the palate and scents of light fruit (integrated red currant, cherry and raspberry) together with black currant, violets and leather. It is smooth with refined tannins (needs 15-30 min to open) and has a long finish. This wine will hopefully last for another 5 years (the fungus worries me, otherwise for sure it would). Impression: BEAUTIFUL. Tasted Mar/10.

To me, these days wine from Navarra region has better QPR than wine from its famous neighbour Rioja. Bodegas Valcarlos managed to win two gold medals with its 1999 grand reserva and with this 2000 reserva they managed to turn not so good vintage into an excellent wine. This wine is pleasantly complex with a nice finish, though much lighter than its older sibling. This wine is a MUST TRY, guaranteed to satisfy even the snobbiest of vinos. My rating 89-90.

If you would like to see wines I recommend and that are still available at the LCBO, please visit this link (listed in my profile):

http://www.winealign.com/wino/dantrcka/recomended-wines-you-can-still-buy