The Faustino I Rioja is a true classic. Grapes from Faustino's oldest vines are used for this wine, resulting in full-bodied and powerful grapes. These grapes are harvested by hand and then pressed immediately. They are then aged for an impressive 26 months in French and American oak barrels. After this oak aging, the Faustino I undergoes three years of bottle aging in the cellars, resulting in a stunning result. The first Spanish wines left the winery over 150 years ago. Bodega Faustino manages the entire production process itself. All the grapes for its Reservas and Gran Reservas are grown in-house, which is highly unusual in Rioja. The entire production process, from vine to bottle, remains under one roof. The success of this approach is evident in Faustino's significant international success. The family business was soon forced to expand with more vineyards, wine barrels, and cellars. Bodega Faustino now owns over 800 hectares of vineyards and exports its wines to more than forty countries. The winery can hold approximately 50,000 oak barrels and maintains a permanent inventory of approximately nine million bottles.
The wines are typically presented in frosted, Burgundian-style bottles with a Rembrandt-style label depicting an 18th-century Spanish nobleman. The Gran Reserva bottles are also wrapped in gold wire mesh. The Faustino I Rioja has an intense, warm, and complex aroma. The palate is particularly pronounced, with spicy aromas of vanilla and oak. There's also plenty of ripe black fruit, spices like pepper and bay leaf, a touch of toffee, and coffee grounds. This is a superb wine for true connoisseurs: powerful, rich, and with a very long finish. Perfect with red meat or game.
