Gaudium
⏳ Drinking Window
2025 - 2038
🍽️ Food & Wine Pairings
Slow-roasted milk-fed lamb, grilled prime ribeye steak, and mature sheep's milk cheeses such as Manchego.
✨ Technical Specifications
Marques de Caceres, founded in 1970 by Enrique Forner with the guidance of legendary Bordeaux enologist Emile Peynaud, played a pivotal role in modernizing Rioja winemaking. Gaudium, which translates from Latin as joy or delight, represents the estate's ultra-premium modern expression. Sourced from select, low-yielding parcels of ancient bush vines—some over 70 years old—in the cool-climate zones of Rioja Alta and Rioja Alavesa, this wine is predominantly Tempranillo with a small addition of Graciano. The old vines impart intense concentration and mineral depth. Unlike traditional Riojas aged in American oak, Gaudium is aged in new French oak barrels for 18 to 20 months, followed by extensive bottle aging. This creates a wine of profound complexity, featuring dark berry fruit, refined tannins, and elegant spice.
🍾 About the Producer
Founded in 1970 by Enrique Forner in Cenicero within the Rioja Alta subregion, Marqués de Cáceres revolutionized Spanish winemaking by uniting centuries-old Riojan heritage with modern Bordeaux techniques guided by legendary enologist Émile Peynaud. Today directed by Enrique's daughter Cristina Forner, the family-run estate continues its commitment to terroir-driven viticulture and elegant French oak aging, expanding beyond Rioja into prestigious regions like Rías Baixas and Rueda. The bodega is internationally celebrated for its impeccably balanced Crianza, Reserva, and Gran Reserva cuvées, modern prestige bottlings such as Gaudium and MC, as well as nuanced barrel-fermented whites like Antea.
🍇 Grape Varieties
Tempranillo, Garnacha, Graciano, Mazuelo