THE WINES THAT MADE RIOJA FAMOUS

Historically, the production of consistent blends put Rioja’s producers on the global wine map – and they continue to deliver for today’s drinkers. This tasting highlights the brands that built Rioja

Rioja is Bordeaux’s intellectual heiress, on two counts. First, its wines could only achieve greatness when Bordelais winemaking knowhow – the ‘Médoc method’, as it was called – was imported into the region. Careful viticulture, fruit selection, destemming, long maceration and oak ageing are the necessary conditions to reveal Rioja’s true potential.

Second, the business model for the best traditional Rioja wineries was inspired by the French one: building prestige via the use of brands. While producers had the expertise around where the best wines could be made, wine merchants cared about names on labels.

In every other respect, Rioja and Bordeaux differed. To define who is better, French consumers had the debatable support of the Bordeaux region’s official 1855 Classification. Rioja producers, by contrast, were left to their own devices. To create a loyal customer base, two conditions are that brands have their own identity, and that they are deemed reliable.

However, most Rioja wineries had to buy the bulk of their grapes from small growers. Most land holdings in Rioja are tiny and have nothing in common with the powerful Bordeaux bourgeoisie and their large properties. With very few exceptions, blends were the only possibility for Rioja brands.

Year after year, elite Rioja producers dedicated a lot of time and intelligence to fine-tuning the art of blending.

Master blenders play a crucial role in the region. Often, their ancestors created the recipe, but it had to be adapted, season after season, in order to match the vagaries of the climate with the consistency required by the market. Rioja blends tend to be quite complex – a final blend can include several grape varieties from several vineyards, and wines that have been aged differently.

The Rioja region has developed over time. More complex segmentations have appeared, because of refined market demand. The origin of the grapes became more relevant, and new categories, such as ‘village’ and ‘single-vineyard’ wines, have been defined. But none of this has diluted the role played by brands in Rioja.

Brands are Rioja’s ambassadors, and they are identified with the region. Rioja wine lovers usually get to know the region through a brand, and then explore other wines – although most drinkers stay with their favourite. Consequently, it’s relevant to pay particular attention to brands: they indicate the quality of the appellation.

This tasting proved positive in that respect – 80% of the wines were awarded 90pts or more. Many were distinctive as regards reliability and identity. The wow factor was also notable in some cases, demonstrating two things that should be obvious but are often neglected. First, there is no reason why a blended wine should be inferior to a singlevineyard wine; and second, many blends result in wines that are better than any of their individual components taken separately.

Rioja is a region of coexistence in diversity, where the hierarchies typical of Bordeaux, Burgundy or Barolo do not play a relevant role. Based on the evidence of this tasting, it is a pleasing difference, which results in consistent quality for wine drinkers.

‘Brands are Rioja’s ambassadors’