Surely the most dramatic way to enter Rioja is by road. Travelling from the direction of Bilbao, you rise up to the Sierra de Cantabria, which peaks at 1,221m. Coming down, the view towards the Ebro river is sensational. Great wines await... and fine foods too. The mouth waters as much as the eye is charmed.
Unlike so many wine regions, the landscape is not machine-made. Masses of small vineyards intersect with larger ones, a blend of bush vines and canopies. It is a mix of altitudes and aspects, with the mighty Ebro running through.
In fact, the river is not as mighty here as it will become by the time it decants into the Mediterranean. The only one of Spain’s great rivers to flow east (the rest flow west into the Atlantic), it receives tributaries running down from the two sierras that enclose Rioja.
Rioja was the first DOC in Spain and the first DOCa (Denominación de Origen Calificada). According to official sources, it’s also the denomination with the most hectares of ‘old and centenary’ vineyards. The region’s success at wine marketing has given the world (or most of it) a certain image of Rioja. The problem is that this established image is rather one-dimensional. As with Champagne or Burgundy, the word ‘Rioja’ encapsulates a mosaic of wines and styles, tradition and innovation.
Now, at the start of the third decade of the 21st century, Rioja is, more than ever, proving itself as a place to explore. Across the latter half of the 20th century, this region (like the rest of Spain) developed wines that were clean and consistent but not especially individual. Rioja producers also sold far too many wines at bargain-basement prices – and they still do. Yet change is in the air.
Denne historien er fra January 2022-utgaven av Decanter.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra January 2022-utgaven av Decanter.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
A Resource for the World? - Argentina is unique in the genetic diversity preserved in much of its vine material. With climate change and disease posing increasing threats worldwide, Catena Zapata winery is asking what lessons can be learned to protect vineyards within and beyond the nation's borders
Argentina is unique in the genetic diversity preserved in much of its vine material. With climate change and disease posing increasing threats worldwide, Catena Zapata winery is asking what lessons can be learned to protect vineyards within and beyond the nation’s borders
Great Cabernets of South America
Other varieties may hog the limelight across South America, but the world’s most popular grape for red wines has played a critical role in the continent's wine heritage. We trace Cabernet Sauvignon’s story here, and recommend 16 benchmark wines to try
PROVENCE by train and bike
With rail links to Paris, Nice, Marseilles and beyond, a vast network of cycle paths and quiet roads, and a plethora of historic wine estates, Provence is an ideal destination for an eco-friendly, car-free and carefree) holiday
IN THE MIX
These days most of the world’s vineyards are planted to just a single variety, but what happens when multiple varieties are planted, harvested and blended together?
Malvasia A BUYER'S GUIDE
If ever a grape was hard to pin down, it'd be Malvasia. Indeed it’s not even a single grape variety. In all of its many varied, and often completely unrelated guises, it has been the mainstay of popular wine styles across the centuries. Our expert takes a closer look...
RIBERA ADOPTS THE NEW OLD WAYS
It’s not so much a new direction for winemakers in Ribera del Duero, but a growing recognition that traditional methods and wine styles set aside by the previous generation can now provide a way ahead to revitalise the region
Roussanne around the world
Up for a challenge? For winemakers as much as wine drinkers, getting a handle on a mercurial grape such as Roussanne isn't easy. But wherever it's grown, when the balance is right, it truly repays the effort
Napa Cabernet 2021
There's a lot of excitement about this vintage, in which conditions were relatively calm and temperatures stable through summer. Ongoing drought reduced yields but intensified flavours, but it means quantities are down and you may need to act fast to secure top wines. Our Napa correspondent selects 60 great wines from more than 500 that he tasted, with many very high scores
10 reason to discover Uruguay
Squeezed between Brazil and Argentina on the Atlantic coast, Uruguay has mostly flown under the tourist radar - until now. Once dubbed 'the Switzerland of the Americas', it's a welcoming country that has much to offer the travelling wine lover
Leo Erazo
The old vines and special terroir of Itata, southern Chile, have beena source of inspiration for this intrepid winemaker. The 2023 fires were a setback, but his commitment to this ancient wine land is undiminished
