Elciego (Alava)
⏳ Drinking Window
2024 - 2035
🍽️ Food & Wine Pairings
Roasted lamb, grilled red meats, and aged Spanish cheeses.
✨ Technical Specifications
Marqués de Riscal, established in 1858 in the historic village of Elciego (Álava), is the pioneer of modern Rioja winemaking. Invited by the local government to introduce Bordeaux techniques to the Basque province of Álava, the founder brought French oak barrels and Bordeaux winemaking expertise to the region. This red wine represents the soul of Rioja Alavesa, where Tempranillo thrives in the chalky clay-limestone soils sheltered by the Sierra de Cantabria. Traditionally blended with small amounts of Graciano and Mazuelo, the wine undergoes meticulous oak aging, yielding a profile rich in dark cherry, balsamic notes, toasted spices, and refined tannins that reflect over a century and a half of winemaking heritage.
🍾 About the Producer
Founded in 1858 by Camilo Hurtado de Amézaga, Marqués de Riscal is one of the oldest and most pioneering wineries in Spain's Rioja region, situated in the historic town of Elciego. The estate revolutionized Spanish viticulture by introducing Bordeaux-style vinification and barrel aging techniques, earning worldwide acclaim as the first non-French wine to win the Diploma of Honor at the Exhibition of Bordeaux in 1895. In addition to its legendary, structured Rioja Reserva and Gran Reserva Tempranillo expressions, the bodega expanded into Castilla y León in the 1970s, playing an instrumental role in establishing the Rueda appellation with benchmark Verdejo and Sauvignon Blanc wines. Today, Marqués de Riscal seamlessly fuses classical winemaking mastery with avant-garde innovation, epitomized by its iconic Frank Gehry-designed winery complex.
🍇 Grape Varieties
Tempranillo, Garnacha, Graciano, Mazuelo