When it comes to winemaking in Spain, the Rioja Alta is unrivaled. This is the place, where the Spanish wine culture arose, and where the best wines of Spain have been produced since antiquity. The Rioja Alta Wine Route is for individuals who want to experience top Spanish wines, plunge into the picturesque beauty of the Spanish landscape, and sample local gastronomic delicacies. You can see both modern manufacturing facilities and traditional wine cellars, as well as enjoy Riojan cuisine and stunning scenery.
Put on comfy shoes and get lost in the vineyards for a few days, strolling through idyllic rural landscapes. Enjoy the life of a country that takes great care to preserve its history, culture, and traditions.
What To Explore In Rioja Alta Wine Route?
The wine trail in Rioja Alta is located in the fabled wine region of La Rioja, where some of the region's most famous wines are produced. The gorgeous mountains of Cantabria, Toloño, and La Demanda, as well as the Ebro River, make up the most characteristic terrain. This area is known for its historical and artistic significance.
There are 15 hiking pathways spread across the Rioja Alta Wine Route, making it a wonderful destination for hikers. A wine tour can take anywhere from a few days to several weeks and include a variety of activities such as visits to vineyards, tastings, visits to historic wineries and cellars, and traditional restaurants where you can meet winemakers in person. Aside from that, you can learn about culture and technology, as well as experience the centuries-old traditions of making famous Spanish wines. Dolmens, Romanesque chapels, Baroque churches, castles, fortresses, and monasteries are only a few of the historical and aesthetic gems to see.
It is possible to attend themed wine festivals, folk festivals, and local cultural sites throughout your trip. Today, wine tourism in Spain is well-developed and popular that there are specialist luxury wine hotels and wine spa complexes. Some contemporary winemakers employ the most prestigious architects to create an outstanding image of winemaking culture.
The following towns are located along the Rioja Alta Wine Route: Ábalos, Briñas, Briones, Casalarreina, Cenicero, Cuzcurrita del Río Tirón, Fuenmayor, Haro, Sajazarra, San Asensio, San Vicente de la Sonsierra, Tirgo and Torremontalbo. Many of them host holidays and events, such as a medieval market and a folk festival in Briones with a pilgrimage to Davalillo's church or the Battle of Claret in San Asensio, and the famous Nights in San Lorenzo. Also, each year on 29th June, Haro Wine Festival, also known as Haro Wine Battle is held in Haro. This event is dedicated to celebration of wine culture of Rioja Alta, streets of the city are crowded with people in clothes pinked from wine bathing and fights.
Spain in Wine Glass - Wines of Rioja Alta
According to the Spaniards themselves, the spirit of the country is in Riojan wines: it is bright, like the colors of nature, tart and rich, like the Spanish temper, with a floral and berry-fruit bouquet, like love itself.
Wines of all kinds are produced in the villages along the route, by both large and small wineries, some of which have a century-long history. Almost everything is available here: rich oak and exquisite and refined reds, vibrant and fresh or aged and oxidized whites, Provence styled rosé wines, and claret wines.
Tempranillo grape variety is the foundation of Rioja wines, accounting for more than 75% of all vineyards. The variety gets its name from the Spanish word Temprano, which means ”early” because it ripens quickly. The finest variety of Spain in its best expressions exhibits the potential for long aging, perfectly balanced body and acidity, clear structure, and gentle fruity taste. Although it is not required on the label, a large portion of Rioja wines are made entirely of Tempranillo.
Tempranillo's traditional Rioja mates are Garnacha Tinta, Graciano, and Masuelo. Garnacha adds spicy Tempranillo notes and body because it absorbs alcohol more quickly and accurately.
The region's two primary white types are Viura and Malvasia. Riojan Malvasia is intriguing varietal that produces rounded white wines with aromas of peaches, grapes, pineapple, and white currant. Malvasia is a common assembling partner for Viura.
Wineries you can stop by on Rioja Alta Wine Route
Viña Ijalba
Viña Ijalba means innovation, research, and respect for the environment. Since its inception it has contributed to recuperating native varieties of Rioja into production of modern wines: from varieties of yesteryear come the wines of today.
Bodegas Señorío de Líbano
Bodegas Señorío de Líbano is a lovely winery located ten kilometers west of Haro. In 1960s, the Libanos bought the castle and started making their wines on the property. The unit forming the castle, gardens, and the winery is known as the true chateau of the region.
Bodegas Manzanos-Haro
The oldest winery in Haro established in 1801, the core of the DOC Rioja wine area, and the only one with a vertical design at the time.
Bodegas Cor de Mei
Cor de Mei means 'Heart of Wine' in Latin and Old Persian and was created to honor four generations of winemakers. It is a very personal winery with vineyards that are over 50 years old.
Bodegas Corral
Bodegas Corral is on the Camino Francés, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the oldest pilgrim routes to Santiago de Compostela. For nearly a century, the family at Bodegas Corral has preserved their winemaking culture and methods.
Bodegas Beronia
The new winery built by Beronia in La Rioja is a unique architectural achievement in the wine industry and a testament to their unwavering dedication to environmental sustainability.
Bodegas Lecea
Bodegas Lecea was born from the passion of a family of winegrowers that has been dedicated to the cultivation of the vine and the production of its own wines for more than five generations.
Puelles Wineries
The Puelles Family has been in Abalos since time immemorial, with a winemaking tradition that predates its foundation. The present generation, the Puelles brothers (Jess and Félix), expanded the Molino Estate and renovated it into a beautiful wine cellar, which stands near the historic 17th century mill.
Tobelos Bodegas
The winery is located in Brias (4 kilometers from Haro), on a steep hill crossing the course of the River Ebro, at the foot of the Sierra Cantabria and the Obarenes Mountains, with excellent views over the Conchas de Haro and the Peas de Bilibio, which can be viewed from the winery's windows.
Valenciso Wineries
For the past twenty-eight years, Bodegas Valencioso has been present in the La Rioja region. The winery was founded in 1998 by the founders, who combined their surnames Enciso and Valentin. The winery employs environmentally friendly practices while producing high-quality wines.
Bodegas Valencioso Winery produces many award-winning wines and is the region's only winery that ferments in concrete tanks.
Altanza Wineries
The winery Bodegas Altanza was created in 1998 with the goal of providing high-quality Rioja wines to the entire world. As a result, the Altanza winery only makes Reserve and Grand Reserve wines from its premises in the Rioja Fuenayor region. The architectural design and building structures applied in their winery, as well as the usage of local Tempranillo as a base for their wines, enable the Bodegas Altanza to retain this heritage.
Bodegas Tritium
Bodegas Tritium has a cellar from fifteenth-century that has been renovated. The wines are all superbly produced, each one unique to the bottle. Realizing the goal of producing natural, biodynamic wines. The refurbished cellar infuses the winery's ambiance with a feeling of history and vintage.
Miguel Merino Wineries
Now, despite being one of Spain's smallest wineries, their wines are among the most prestigious in the country. Their goal is to continue to enjoy the journey of winemaking while being encouraged to expand, not in quantity, but in quality.
Briones, in the center of Rioja Alta, is where the winery is located. It is the location that gathered all the qualities that the chief winemaker was looking for in order to produce high-quality wines: old steep vineyards of Tempranillo grapes, chalky soil, and a climate with a strong Atlantic influence.
Santalba Bodegas
Santalba Bodegas is a family winery in the heart of the Rioja Alta, where you will discover the history and roots of wine in Rioja. Their meticulous care for the land and the creation of quality wines show you the loyalty of a family over generations to the production of excellent wines in the D.O. Ca. Rioja.
Bodegas Sonsierra
Sonsierra was the first cooperative in the Rioja wine region to sell bottled wines and to emphasize the quality and uniqueness of the great vineyards in the Rioja Alta sub-region. Nowadays Videos De Sonsierra creates wines with their own individuality by blending unique aspects of their terroirs and their own skills.
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