$16.99 at Crush Wine & Spirits in Bryant, Arkansas (AR)
91 points – James Suckling
Aged 10 months in French oak barrels
A medium bodied red wine with red fruit flavors like cherry and plum with mint and citrus notes. Soft tannins and smoky notes on finish.
Bodegas Ateca was founded in 2005 as a joint project between the Gil winery family and the well-known importer, Jorge Ordonez. The bodegas is located in the Calatayud wine region in northeastern Spain. The winery in the small town of Ateca that is 14 kilometers outside Zaragoza. The main variety grown is Garnacha from vines 80 to 100 years old.
The Ateca winery is one of several wineries owned by Juan Gil Bodegas Familiares (Juan Gil Family Estates). Juan Gil Estates has over 3,000 hectares of its own vineyards and produces over 8 million bottles. Up to 75% of the wines are exported throughout the world. The Gil family is based in Jumilla where the original winery, Juan Gill, is located. Juan Gil was started in 1916 by Juan Gil Jiménez. The fourth generation of the Gil family now runs the winery. The winery had such great success that it began in 2002 to expand its operations to other wine regions of Spain. Today the company is a group of 11 wineries.
