OUR PRODUCERS IN SPAIN

Bodega Lopez Heredia – Rioja

Possibly the most famous of all Rioja producers, and certainly the most eccentrically traditional, López de Heredia have been crafting wonderful red and white Riojas from their ancient vineyards in Rioja Alta since 1913. Key to their unique style are their 100% – owned bush vines with an average age of 40 years; perfect south-facing vineyards on a hillside leading down to the Ebro River; and the myriad of large old wooden vats where their wines spend years patiently fermenting and ageing before being bottled. Everything here is done naturally, in almost the same way as the wines were made 100 years ago.

Dominio del Urogallo – Asturias

Nicolas Marcos grows and vinifies his wonderful range of personality-packed wines biodynamically – using no added Sulphur – in the cool, hilly and green region of Asturias in northern Spain. He makes his wines from only local grapes, many of which are unknown outside the region, and from very old vines.
Nicolas is a pioneer, an independent thinker and a bit of a provocateur, who left his home in Toro for Asturias because he saw the potential of the region’s soil, climate and indigenous grapes to produce the kind of wines that he loves; elegant, aromatic, low in alcohol, that pair beautifully with food and express a personality as distinctive as his own. While many in the in wine press shower praise on highly extracted and heavily oaked fruit-bomb wines, Nicolas prefers balance and finesse. Why? “Because I like to drink wine,” he says bluntly.
In this age of gradual global warming, it could well turn out that Nicolas is ahead of his time. These cool, fresh and elegant wines with their distinctive personalities could turn out be the future classic wines of Spain.