2019, Rioja Reserva, 'Viña Ardanza', La Rioja Alta S.A. - BOX OF 6
“2019 is a very good year for them (La Rioja Alta), a small crop of powerful and concentrated wines when they produced all their brands, an exception.” - Luis Gutiérrez
“I believe this is the Viña Ardanza that will improve the most over the coming years — a wine to both enjoy and treasure, without a doubt.” Julio Saénz (winemaker)
We are delighted to offer you discounted pricing on the first of the new vintage releases from La Rioja Alta, the Viña Ardanza Rioja Reserva 2019. This is considered to be amongst the top three vintages of this century, alongside 2001 and 2015, with balance and freshness being the defining characteristics of this new release. When Ardanza was first made back in 1942, it was labelled as a ‘Burgundy style wine’ and put in the now iconic Burgundy bottle. The 2019 shows all the elegance and finesse for which Ardanza is renown, with lifted floral notes, classic spices and beautifully silky tannins. In the words of winemaker Julio Sáenz “An exceptional vintage, one of the best in our history, concluding an extraordinary decade for Viña Ardanza. This wine offers great complexity and aging potential. I believe it is the Viña Ardanza that will improve the most in the coming years.”
A blend of over 30 year old Tempranillo (80%) grown on steep high altitude clay-limestone soils in La Cuesta (Fuenmayor) and Montecillo (Cenicero), and 17 year old Garnacha (20%) grown at 550 metres above sea-level in deep pebble-rich terrains in La Pedriza (Tudelilla-Rioja Oriental). The grapes are cluster selected and hand-harvested before being optically sorted before fermentation which lasts 17 days, followed by a natural malolactic fermentation. The Tempranillo is aged for 36 months and the Garnacha for 30 months in seasoned American oak barrels made in their own cooperage. They are traditionally racked by candlelight 5 times before being bottled in December 2023.
About La Rioja Alta S.A.
Located in the Barrio de la Estación area in Haro, La Rioja Alta S.A. is one of the most iconic, historic wineries in the region. It was founded in 1890 by five families including the Aranas, Ardanzas and Alberdis, whose names are celebrated in their wines today. The company expanded over time, and in 1996 build a new state of the art winery, which enabled them to focus on improving all aspects of winemaking to reinforce their position as one of the most respected wineries in the world.
They own over 550 hectares of vineyards across the region and also boast their own in house artisanal cooperage using oak imported from the USA which is air-dried on site in Haro for at least three years. All of this gives them complete control over every aspect of the winemaking process, ensuring a combination of the greatest traditions alongside state of the art technology.
2019 Vintage
The 2019 vintage is the most recent one classified as “Excellent” in the D.O.Ca. Rioja, with the previous “Excellent” vintage dating back to 2011. From a thermal perspective, the year can be described as “cool,” with slightly below-average temperatures. A mild winter and spring led to an early budburst in the vineyard. During flowering (first half of June), cooler-than-usual temperatures and rainfall hindered the normal process of pollination and fertilization of the flowers, causing poor fruit set (known as “shatter”). This resulted in very loose clusters with fewer berries than usual, which is always a positive factor for quality.
Both Tempranillo and Garnacha were affected by poor fruit set, but Garnacha was much more impacted due to its natural sensitivity to this phenomenon, leading to significantly lower grape yields per hectare. In terms of rainfall, the year was dry, with below-average precipitation distributed evenly throughout the year. This allowed the vineyard to develop in a very balanced way, with only moderate water stress, which encouraged smaller berry sizes at harvest. Smaller berries, in turn, result in more concentrated musts and wines—a hallmark of quality for reds. The lack of rainfall also ensured the grapes ripened in perfect health, allowing us to harvest them at their optimal ripeness for each parcel.