Rioja

Savoury Spanish newcomer with impressive credentials and appealing spicy flavours marrying nicely with the ripe baked red fruit flavours of good quality Rioja. This wine drinks beautifully now and can certainly age further and evolve well for the next three to four years, potentially longer. 

It was rated among the top 10 best Riojas of 2020 by the UK Drinks Business magazine and supported by a gold medal from the Rioja Masters 2020 and a Best Buy with 92/100 from Wine & Spirits magazine. 

Joven means young in Spanish and refers to red wines with low to no oak, like this lush, fruity Spanish red made from the most popular grape in Spain, Tempranillo. This wine is full of dark plum flavours in this firmly textured red wine. 

It offers exceptional value for money and is certified organic.

A fabulous Rioja, which is 100% Tempranillo and absolutely incredible marriage of beautiful quality Spanish grapes with outstanding winemaking. 

A stunner. 

Usually 85% Tempranillo, 10% Graciano, 5% Mazuelo and Garnacha.

Vi?edos del Contino was created by Cvne and the family owners of the estate in 1973, establishing the ?ch?teau? concept in the Rioja region. It is found in an ancestral home inside a bend in the Ebro river. The wines are made exclusively from the stocks planted on its 62 hectares located in Laserna, near the town of Laguardia in the Rioja Alavesa wine making region.

94+/100 Parker's Wine Advocate, Luis Gutierrez

"The renewed classical red 2016 Reserva was produced as a blend of 85% Tempranillo, 10% Graciano and 5% Mazuelo. It fermented in small stainless steel and concrete vats and matured in 225-liter French (80%) and American (20%) oak barrels for 18 months. It has a very expressive nose, open, aromatic and showy, a little Rh?ne-ish. 2016 was a cooler year and they had a long harvest, and it seems like the fruit ripened thoroughly without excess. It's a natural continuation of the 2015, when the wine already had more freshness and better integrated oak. It has a full body and some dusty tannins, finishing dry and tasty. It's ready to drink. There were 281,389 bottles and 3,000 magnums produced. It was bottled in May 2019." Drink 2020 - 2030

17/20 JancisRobinson.com, Tim Jackson MW (2015 vintage)

"85% Tempranillo, 10% Graciano, 3% Garnacha, 2% Mazuelo. 90% of the winery?s production. Mid-deep ruby. Ripe, red-cherry fruit, with beautifully layered clove and cedar oak spice notes. Lovely integration of oak and fruit. Well crafted, though there?s a good backbone of fine tannins that will carry it through for a decade from now. (TJ)."

Gran Familia Rioja is an excellent value Rioja, with delicious red fruit flavours and balance. Here, the winemakers have opted for a more fruit forward Rioja by using less oak than usual. The result is a wine that shows great varietal expression and brightness. This is a very versatile wine at a great price.

Muga white Rioja is a blend of 90% Viura and 10% Malvasía and Garnacha Blanca. This is a very clean and floral wine with almond and citrus notes at the forefront. The nose is very perfumed with lime and toasty aromatics that lead to a palate which is fresh, with good acidity and a long apple driven finish.

Bright cherry colour with some violet nuances. In the nose, red berries aromas. This red wine shows an elegance in the mouth, yet very lively, with some spice back notes and a very balanced acidity.

This Crianza is made with a blend of 85% Tempranillo, 15% Garnacha & Mazuelo and aged for a minimum of two years, with at least one year in oak barrels.

A traditional Rioja. Full bodied. Rich, red fruit aromas with noticeable oak influence. Very fruit forward on the palate.

The Tempranillo (78%) comes from 30-year-old vines in our Cuesta (Cenicero) and Montecillo (Fuenmayor) vineyards. The Garnacha (22%) comes from La Pedriza vineyard in Tudelilla (Rioja Oriental). This 70 hectare property offers unbeatable conditions for growing this variety. Its nutrient-poor soil, covered with boulders, results in great varietal typicity, rich in aromas, with a pleasant, elegant structure. We started picking these plots in mid-October. 

The grapes were harvested manually and transported to the winery in refrigerated vehicles. Alcoholic fermentation took place spontaneously. Malolactic fermentation concluded at the end of the year. In March 2013, the selected wines were put in barrels to start ageing separately: the Tempranillo for 36 months with six manual rackings, in American oak barrels averaging 4 years in age and the Garnacha for 30 months with five manual rackings, in barrels with two and three wines. The final blend was bottled in March 2016.

Outstandingly bright, lively and intense garnet red, with an incipient cherry red rim. The first nose is very intense, with spicy, balsamic and ripe fruit notes. After swirling, aromas of black pepper, sweet liquorice, nutmeg, coffee, vanilla and cinnamon make their appearance. Mouth full of flavours, with a pleasant acidity and balance, and very polished tannins that enhance the harmonious structure. Complex and elegant aftertaste with spicy and balsamic hints. 

To enjoy right now, but with a long life ahead.

One of our most popular Spanish reds and best value for money Riojas. Fruit is the hero in this wine, which was made without oak and with fermentation completely in concrete tanks. Dry flavours, firm tannins and fresh bold fruit flavours make this wine impressively well structured with delicious approachable appeal right now. Complex notes include earthy spice, firm smooth fruit tannins and a long finish. LZ is made by Telmo Rodr?guez, one of Spain?s most dynamic winemakers, who has used  native grapes, biodynamics, bush vines grown traditionally low to the ground and great vineyards to make many of Europe?s most exciting wines today.

Viña Real Reserva is made mainly from grapes from Rioja Alavesa vineyards. The grapes come primarily from the towns of Laguardia and Elciego. Neighbouring municipalities have been involved in the production of this wine for several decades. The plots are small and sometimes terraced, featuring over 30-year old head-trained and unirrigated vines. The soils are mostly calcareous, poor in organic matter, with smaller yields and varying aspects.

Following pre-fermentation cold maceration, alcoholic fermentation takes place in gravity-fed (with a bridge crane) stainless steel tanks at a controlled temperature of 28-30ºC.

During fermentation, remontage and delestage are carried out, with tastings to determine the ideal time for running off (also gravity led) into concrete tanks.

The wine is aged in new single-use French and American oak barrels for an average of 22 months, with manual racking taking place every 4 months in the first year. Once bottled, the wine is aged in the Viña Real cellars for a minimum of one and a half years to develop a rounded and complex flavour before being released onto the market.