Spain and Portugal for Visitors

The Wine

It has been said that the wine from Spain's La Rioja region is "the best wine in the world in terms of value for money." La Rioja produces red, white and rosé wines, as well as the idiosyncratic clarete, but the red wines are those of most interest.

"La Rioja" in Spain means two things - the region and the province. Within the region of La Rioja, there are three areas with a slightly different climate and soil. These are the Rioja Alta (Upper Rioja, capital Haro), to the west, the Rioja Baja (Lower Rioja, capital Logroño) to the east and the Rioja Alavesa to the north, outside the province of La Rioja altogether. Wine from the Rioja Alavesa is characteristically made from the tempranillo grape and is fruity and good drunk young. The Rioja Baja produces wines from the garnacha grape which tend to be heavy and have a high alcohol content. The Rioja Alta produces the most sophisticated wines, usually based on the tempranillo grape variety. They tend to be delicate in flavour and mature well, and are the wines of most interest to collectors.

La Rioja wine is classified into four types, according to its quality and aging. Except for the wine labelled "Garantia de Origen," known as vino joven, this takes place first in oak barrels and then in the bottle. There is no point in aging a wine which will not benefit from it, so the grape selection process is crucial. For red wine, the types are:

Choosing a Rioja

If you are thinking of buying a wine to keep for a few years, remember that there is no point in buying a young wine - the production process has not prepared it for further aging.

 

Neither are you likely to get very good results from a crianza, though it will last better. The wines made for aging are the reservas and gran reservas.

Without actually tasting the wine, the most important element to look for when you are choosing one (not just a Rioja) is the winery. The more reputable the winery, the more zealously they care for their good name. The next thing to look for is the type and the last thing the year. Comparative tables of good and bad years are useful, but however good the harvest in a particular year, if the winery is not up to it, neither will the wine be, and a more mediocre vintage from a better winery is likely to be better value.

There are over 2,000 wineries registered in La Rioja, so listing them all is not feasible, nor would it be especially helpful. But names to watch out for include Bodegas Berberana, Bodegas Bilbainas, Bodegas Muga, Cune, La Rioja Alta, Marqués de Murrieta and Unión Viti-Viní­cola.. In terms of price, in 1999, the average cost of a bottle of Rioja was 701 pesetas ($3.70), ranging from 466 pesetas ($2.45), the average price in the bottom price band (of three), to 1,280 pesetas ($6.74) in the "superior" price band. A good Rioja will continue to improve for up to fifteen or twenty years in the bottle.

Whether you are a wine expert or a novice, a visit to a winery is a pleasant and instructive way to spend a couple of hours. Most of the Rioja wineries are pleased to escort people round their establishments (on working days, avoid holidays and weekends), but do arrange the visit beforehand - many of these businesses are fed up with people turning up on spec and may not even be civil. 

Bodegas Bilbainas Estación, 3 26200 Haro Tel: (34) 941 310147 Fax: (34) 941 310706		Bodegas Muga Av Vizcaya, s/n 26200 Haro Tel: (34) 941 310498 Fax: (34) 941 312867
C.V.N.E. Costa del Vino, 21 26200 Haro Tel: (34) 941 310650 Fax: (34) 941 312819		Marqués de Murrieta Finca Ygay, Crta Zaragoza, km 5  26006 Logroño Tel: (34) 941 258100 Fax: (34) 941 251606
Marqués de Riscal Torrea, 1 01340 ELCIEGO, Alava Tel: (34) 941-106000 Fax: (34) 941-106023		La Rioja Alta Av Vizcaya, 8 26200 Haro Tel: (34) 941 310250 Fax: (34) 941 312854

Apart from these, interesting visits are the wine museum in Logroño, the capital of the province of La Rioja and another in the official wine laboratory, the Estación Enológica, in Haro, the capital of the Rioja Alta.