Hacienda López de Haro, Classica Gran Reserva Rosado, Rioja 2009 (12.5%)

£33 The Wine Society

Rosé has arguably been the greatest category success story of the past decade in the wine world – driven by Provence. Provence, though, no longer has a monopoly on that success: rosé drinkers everywhere are beginning to wake up to the fact that this category, too, has its highways and byways, all of which offer distinctive, authentic pleasures. An oak-aged rosé from 2009? Why not? In place of fresh creaminess, you’ll find a mellow, forest-like warmth; in place of chiffon fruits, you’ll find concentration and structure, vinosity, secondary fruit resonances and even a faint tannic grip. This is emphatically a rosé for food, and if you’re not receptive to the idea of oaked rosé you’re better off looking elsewhere, but for those whose palates are open to this other world, this is a rewardingly layered, mouthfilling and satisfying aged wine.

Not even 2,000 bottles were released of this exceptional, against-the-grain rosé: a wine that taps into the prestigious history of Rioja. ‘These aged rosés were on the market for decades and sent to the world’s top tables, but in recent decades they have been virtually abandoned in our region,’ says Richi Arambarri, CEO and general manager of Hacienda López de Haro which was established in 2001 by his father.

It’s a captivating project, not least its Classica range which, as Arambarri explains, was created ‘to pay homage to, rediscover and claim back a wine profile that we in Rioja had abandoned because it was no longer fashionable’.

‘It is a wine from the historically renowned rosé-producing region of Alto Najerilla,’ explains Arambarri. ‘The blend (Viura and Garnacha) is the historical blend of claretes from this area, which is in a remote location with a terroir we believe should be shared, although it’s a challenge because of its small size and the mix of varieties you find there.

‘One of our pillars is to study what our predecessors did – history is important. At the same time, we must also look to the future.’