I was a bit skeptical when it came to this months topic of this month's Wine Blogging Wednesday. Spanish reds seemed like a foreign idea to me. Sangria was the closest I had ever gotten to drinking a red wine from Spain.

I think I lucked out in my choice of wine. When in Larry's, I came across of bottle of 2001 Rioja from El Coto.

I realized by looking at the label that I knew little about Spanish Wine. FOr instance, did you know that a Rioja means that it is a wine grown in the Rioja area of Spain? In short, Rioja is a region in Spain, much in the same way that Champagne is a region in France. More specifically, Rioja is a famous wine region in the north central portion of Spain. I didn't know this until forced to look it up. After all, I didn't want to look like a complete idiot when writing this up. These are the things I learn when doing research.

The 2001 El Coto Rioja was made with the traditional Tempranillo grape, which is supposed to give the wine a 'berry' flavor. El Coto suggests that it's primarily a strawberry flavor, but I disagreed, feeling it was more of a cherry flavor on the sides of the tongue.

They age the wine in American White Oak, and it's rather apparent. The wine carried a vanilla essance that stood out on the back of the tongue . It was quite delicious and surprising that this is how it was supposed to taste. I hadn't realized that my taste buds were that in tune.

Overall, the wine is more on the sweet than dry side. It does have a slight bite to it, but not as much as your sweeter French Reds. It was decided that this wine would go well with a steak, but especially with a pastry such as a cherry tart.

It's a wine that I would try again.