About Rioja Wine

Spain is a melting pot of history and cultural influence that is no more obvious than in its food and wine. Rioja wine represents perfectly the various civilisations and climatic diversity that identifies Spain as an exciting producer of food and wine.

Rioja's rich soil allows fruit, vegetables, olive trees and of course vines to thrive. Riojan wine has seen a tremendous leap from poor quality, low priced gloop to realistically priced, exciting cult wines. This change of fortune for Spanish wine has been largely due to takeovers of old Bodegas and investment into launching new Bodegas, where low quantity and high quality are at the forefront of winemakers minds. Indeed, Rioja as a whole has voluntarily reduced its yields in latter years.

Although the Rioja wine region actually covers quite a small geographic area, the considerable variations in climatic conditions give Rioja wines their distinctive characteristics.

The main red grape varieties grown in Rioja are Tempranillo, Garnacha, Mazuelo and Graciano. Red Riojan wines have soft tannins and fruit with notes of vanilla and cassis.

White grape varieties grown in Rioja are predominantly Viura, Malvasia and White Garnacha. Riojan whites are crisp, dry and when wooded there are notes of smoke and nuts.