Spain - La Rioja

Question 1

La Riojoa geography (location)

Answer 1

North central Spain

Question 2

La Rioja map

Answer 2

Known as Spain’s Bordeaux!

Question 3

La Rioja geography (features)

Answer 3

Foothills of Cantabrian and Pyrenees Mountains
Ebro River flows through - provides warm summers and mild winters

Question 4

La Rioja climate

Answer 4

• RAIN SHADOW created by Cantabrian Mountains
• Blocks cold influence of Atlantic Ocean
• Continental climate
• Alavesa is coolest and wrrest
• Oriental is Mediterranean

Question 5

La Rioja soil

Answer 5

Calcareous clay
Ferrous clay
Alluvial

Best vineyards in clay/limestone soils

Question 6

Rioja vinification

Answer 6

Traditionally aged in American oak
Carbonic maceration is common on joven styles
Old vines

Question 7

White grapes

Answer 7

Viura
Malvasia
Garnacha Blanca

Question 8

Red grapes

Answer 8

TEMPRANILLO
Granacha
Mazuelo (Carignan)
Graciano (on the rise)

Question 9

La Rioja DOCa

Answer 9

Spain’s first DOCa!

Dry red (tino) wines from Tempranillo grape and white wines from Viura grape

Question 10

La Rioja DOCa subzones

Answer 10

Rioja Alta
Rioja Baja
Rioja Alavesa

Question 11

Rioja Alta

Answer 11

• High altitude
• Hilly area covering most of the western half of region
• Mild climate
• Best grapes produced here

Question 12

Rioja Alavesa

Answer 12

• Part of Rioja Alta north of the Ebro
• Mild climate
• Best grapes produced here

Question 13

Rioja Oriental

Answer 13

• Lower flatter eastern portion of Rioja DOCa
• Previously known as Rioja Baja but recently changed name because of connotation of “baja”
• Hottest and driest of the zones

Question 14

Rioja aging requirements for Rioja Tinto

Answer 14

Crianza
Reserva
Gran Reserva

Question 15

How long is aging for Crianza?

Answer 15

2yrs min, 1 yr in oak

Question 16

How long is aging for Reserva?

Answer 16

3yrs min, 1 yr in oak

Question 17

How long is aging for Gran Reserva

Answer 17

5yrs min, 2 yrs in oak
Only made during best vintages

Question 18

What does Joven mean in regards to Rioja?

Answer 18

“Young wine”
Means wine spent less than a year in oak
Fresh and easy drinking

Question 19

What are Vinedos Singulares?

Answer 19

• 2017
• “Single-vineyard wines”
• Must petition Spain’s regulatory body to ask for single-vineyard status
• Vineyard must be at least 35 yrs old
• Grapes must be harvested by hand
• Bodega must have been buying grapes from vineyard for at least 10yrs.

Question 20

What styles of wine are produced in Rioja?

Answer 20

• Rioja Rosado also produced
• Modern producers making more fruit focused wines using French oak and avoiding traditional labelling terms of Crianza, Reserva, and Gran Reserva

Question 21

Rioja producers to know

Answer 21

Marques de Riscal
Marques de Caceres
Finca Allende
Bodegas Lopez de Heredia (one of the most classic Riojas)
La Rioja Alta

Question 22

Rioja/Bordeaux relationship during Phylloxera

Answer 22

• When oidium the phylloxera attacked vineyards in France, the French depended on Spain for wine
• French negociants travelled to Rioja for wine and the region boomed and grew by 40,000 acres
• Some negociants stayed in Spain and began bodegas of their own vinifying wines in French style
• In 1901 when the cure for phylloxera was figured out, the music stopped and Rioja was left without a major market.
• Many barrels had been left to age with no market to export and thus long oak aging became a hallmark of the region

Question 23

How oak use and amount of oxidation affect food pairing?

Answer 23

Can be done thru oak barrel, cement tanks, open-top fermentation, anfora, or any other method of controlled oxygen exposure, these complex wines display flavors that lean more toward the cooked/dried fruit world, with notes of nuttiness, yeastiness, and even umami.

Because of their unique character, varied aromas and levels of complexity, oxidative wines are incredibly versatile, jiving with foods traditionally tough to pair, like artichokes, raw fish, shellfish, and even cooked, richer items.