La Rioja Alta is the most prestigious winery from the Rioja wine region in Spain. The winery was founded in 1890 by 5 families of connaisseurs that wanted to come up with an alternative for the Bordeaux wines. Back then, Bordeaux vineyards were hit hard by phylloxera. La Rioja Alta is famous worldwide for its top quality red wines. Most of these red wines are produced from grape varieties such as Tempranillo, Mazuelo and Graciano.

Rioja Wines

Rioja is Spain's most famous wine region. Divided into three subregions - Rioja Alta, Rioja Alavesa and Rioja Oriental - each with their unique characteristics, Rioja produces predominantly red wines from Tempranillo and Garnacha. Barrel-aging is almost mandatory in Rioja, so look for these terms on labels: Crianza, Reserva or Gran Reserva. Crianza being the least expensive is consequently the most produced. As for white wines Malvasia was Rioja's favourite but now the emphasis shifted to Viura.

Tempranillo Wines

Tempranillo is a red wine grape variety famous for some of the best wines in Spain and Portugal. Best Tempranillo red wines are found in the famous Spanish Rioja and Ribera del Duero wine regions. In Portugal, Tempranillo is generally used in Douro Valley to produce Port wines and table wines. Here it goes under the name of Tinta Roriz. Tempranillo is a good match for American oak. Its flavour profile perfectly integrates the vanilla and coconut notes from the American barrels.