This exceptional, rocky white Rioja goes from strength to strength. Today the blend comprises 80% Viura and 10% each Malvasía Riojana and Garnacha Blanca. The grapes are drawn mostly from the cool, high country of Ábalos, including the old-vine vineyards of San Cristobel (650 metres) and Perquita, planted in 1965. From 2021 the wine now benefits from a portion of 75-year-old Viura from Baños de Ebro. Fermented wild in concrete, the wine was then raised in a mixture of eggs, old barrels and 4,000-litre foudre as Puyaubert seeks to harness the mineral salinity and tension gifted by the rocky limestone soils and old vines in his highland vineyards.
It starts with a citrus-forward attack, followed by waves of pulpy white pear and yellow floral fruit, underpinned by lovely mineral freshness. Exhilarating drive and energy lead to a mouth-watering stony finish. A shining example of new-wave Rioja Blanco.