This wine has dropped the Bozeto styling and is now simply called Exopto. New name, same vibrant, great-value Rioja. This pan-regional expression of Rioja’s three principal grape varieties is conceived as a lively, easy-drinking introduction to the range. Most entry-level wines from this region are based on Tempranillo (a variety easier and more profitable to grow), yet here Garnacha represents 65% of the blend. This Garnacha hails from very old vines in the sandy, river-stone terroirs of El Agudo and Al Casillón at Alfaro (Rioja Oriental). The Tempranillo is drawn from a selection of mature vines in Ábalos (high-county Rioja Alta), and some Ábalos Graciano adds freshness and finesse.

The wine ferments in a combination of concrete and steel tank, then ages for six months in concrete and 5,000-litre oak vats. These days, Tom includes a measure of semi-carbonic maceration for extra buoyancy. Opening with perfumes of dusky berries and well-judged spice, this is a wonderfully aromatic, restaurant-friendly wine. It’s a wine that impresses with its precision rather than power. Even so, the warmer year gives an open, juicy wine and a great deal of drinking pleasure: spice, vibrancy and velvety flow flecked with notes of espresso, dried flowers and wild woody herbiness to go with its smoky blackberry fruit. If you’re looking for a bright, succulent grower Rioja, few will deliver better value than this.

Organic. From humble beginnings, Valenciso has risen to become a leading light among Rioja’s small yet growing band of terroir-focused producers. The vineyards and cellar are located in the far north of Rioja Alta in Ollauri, a small village four kilometres from Haro. In part of what has been proposed as the Western Sonsierra zone (by Alberto Gil and Antonio Remesal Villar in their compelling new volume—Rioja: Vinos Silenciosos), Ollauri’s vineyards are noted for their excellent calcário soils, altitudes of up to 600 meters and Atlantic-influenced climate. These factors are responsible for imparting depth and finesse into the Rioja Alta’s northern Tempranillo.

A distinctive feature of Valenciso’s approach in the cellar has been the widespread use of concrete tanks for fermentation, a practice which allows for a gentler extraction of fruit and colour. Concrete vats were once a mainstay in Rioja, yet by the 1980s the tradition of fermenting and aging in concrete vessels had largely been replaced by stainless steel and oak maturation. Today, thanks to its numerous advantages and a group of specialist manufacturers, concrete has found itself right back at the forefront of fashion.

While all Valenciso’s wines see the inside of some concrete during their élevage, this bottling, as the name suggests, is fermented and raised entirely in concrete vats. It’s 100% Tempranillo drawn from a group of old-vine vineyards nestled in the limestone-rich hillsides of Haro and Ollauri. All up, this was aged for 26 months before bottling. 

This estate's flagship perfectly encapsulates Luis Gutiérrez’s assertion that Valenciso is one of the most traditional of Rioja’s modern producers. From a selection of handpicked Tempranillo from the clay/limestone soils around Ollauri, the grapes are drawn from 17 organically managed plots spread across the villages of Villalba, Gimileo, Rodezno, Briones and Haro, all within a five-kilometre radius of the winery.

Part of what has been proposed as the Western Sonsierra zone (by Alberto Gil and Antonio Remesal Villar in Rioja: Vinos Silenciosos), these venerable sites lie at the heart of Rioja’s grower-producer genesis in the late 19th century.  Key to the quality includes the patrimony of old-vine Tempranillo (no less than 60 years old in this cuvée), excellent limestone calcário soils and altitudes of up to 600 metres. In the right hands, these historic terroirs imbue their wines with aromatic intensity and great structure for longevity. 

The wine ferments naturally in concrete vats before aging for 18 months in (mostly) low-toast Radoux French oak barriques. In recent vintages, 10% of the wine has also been raised in low-toast Caucasus oak, further lessening the wine’s already minimal wood influence. Following aging in barrel, the wine is transferred back to cool concrete vats to settle for a further 24 months before release. Luis and Carmen find the wine clarifies so well in concrete that there is no need to fine or filter it before bottling. “We seek wines with aromatic volume, wines that shine not out of weight but of perfume,” explains Luis Valentín. 

Debuting in 2020, V.P. stands for viñedos propios or estate vineyards, distinct from the regular Vidonia cuvée primarily because it is crafted from estate-grown fruit and secondly as it is fermented in new 500L Stockinger barrels, lending the wine a more polished profile. The production—just two barrels—is a fraction of the village wine. It is crafted exclusively from 100-year-old vines in Las Suertes (the same paraje that produces the El Ciruelo red) on clay and sandy soils. Aged for 11 months in the same barrels, this is Jonatan García’s answer to top white Burgundy.

Biodynamic. 85% Xarel·lo, 15% Macabeu. This striking single-vineyard wine takes its name from the sloping Serral del Vell estate overlooked by the Montserrat mountains. The soil of the Serral del Vell plateau contains calcareous lumps and quite a bit of limestone from the Serra del Mar and the Serra Catalana, which were deposited in the area due to erosion. From these lean, rocky soils and these mature vines (Xarel.lo planted in 1996 and 1997 and two plots of Macabeo planted in 1989) Recaredo is searching for the truest expression of the site’s most mineral soils (containing 33% active limestone). Only the Xarel·lo base wines are fermented in large-format oak. Recaredo prefers to use tanks for their Macabeu.

17% ABV. From a solera approaching a century of production, this rich yet almost fully dry Oloroso averages 15 years of age.

It’s fleshy, with a round and velvety texture and a long, vibrant finish. Unfortified again, the nose throws hints of caramel, orange rind and toasted almonds. The palate is mellow and super-complex, with lively freshness and complex flavours of quince, bitter orange and loads of brown spice and tobacco notes. The finish is long and iodine-rich. Perfect to drink on its own or sensational with almonds, charcuterie and very mature cheese.

Like all sherry-style wines in Montilla-Moriles, even the dry ones, this Palo Cortado is made from Pedro Ximénez grapes. It starts its life as a Fino, then becomes Amontillado as the flor dies and evolves further towards Palo Cortado as the character of the oxidative aging becomes stronger. You could say this wine is selected from the heavier, darker casks of Amontillado.

Bottled unfiltered with an average of 25 years, it opens with an intense with tobacco leaves, walnut and hazelnut underpinned by pepper and clove spice and notes of orange peel. The palate is dry with citrus peel and roasted nuts joined by super-fine, moreish savoury texture. It finishes with salty and intense close. It deserves the best jamón you can get your hands on.