I’ve recently been doing some tastings for my Sunday Express column, and I’ve been reminded how good and affordable some Rioja can be. Of course, as with any major wine…
La Rioja Alta Gran Reserva 890 Selección Especial 2005
The top wine of La Rioja Alta. It’s a blend of 95% Tempranillo, 3% Graciano and 2% Mazuelo, and the wine spends 6 years in barrel with 10 rackings (transferring…
López de Heredia Viña Tondonia Reserva Blanco 2004
There’s something about López de Heredia, the ultra-traditional Rioja bodega. These are not easy wines, and require time. They are made in quite an oxidative way, and there’s no emphasis on…
Torre de Oña Martelo Reserva 2012 Rioja, Spain
This is a new wine from La Rioja Alta’s sister property in Rioja, Torre de Oña. They bought the estate in 1995 with a view to doing something a bit…
La Rioja Alta Viña Ardanza 2008
I was impressed by this classically styled Rioja from La Rioja Alta. In a good vintage, like 2008, Viña Ardanza is a bit of a steal. It’s available from The…
Marqués de Murrieta Dalmau 2009 Rioja, Spain
This is a single vineyard wine from leading Rioja producer Marques de Murrieta. It’s a selection from the 60 year-old Canajas vineyard, which is part of the 300 hectare Ygay…
Icon wines at The Sampler, including Latour 82, La Chapelle 78 and Ygay 59
Each year The Sampler put some high-end ‘icon’ wines on their enomatic machines. It’s a real highlight tasting through them, and this year was no exception. The highlights included the…
Tapas crawling in Logroño, Rioja
I’m in Rioja, on a short trip with Vintae, a dynamic wine company looking to make authentic wines across several Spanish wine regions. They’re working with organics, marginal vineyards, forgotten…
Viña Tondonia Reserva 2004
This is a lovely wine. Lopez de Heredia is an ultratradtional winery in Rioja, with no concessions made to modernity. I really like their wines, which show lovely complexity, made…