The Story
Appellation: DO Rueda
Variety: Verdejo 100%
Produced at our winery in Villafranca del Duero, using a selection from our Verdejo parcels near the Duero River that offer more aromatic intensity and freshness. On 12 January 1980, D.O. Rueda was recognised as the first appellation of origin in the autonomous region of Castilla y León. This wine-making area is situated in the highest part of the northern meseta right in the heart of the Duero high plateau. It extends across the provinces of Valladolid, Segovia and Ávila. The alluvial, iron-rich soil features very good drainage. It has a continental climate with cold winters and hot summers. These characteristics are ideal for growing native white varieties like Viura, Sauvignon Blanc and, in particular, the Verdejo variety.
Winemaking: Very gentle cold skin maceration for 3 hours followed by 15 days fermentation in stainless steel under controlled temperature at 14°C.
Ageing: On lees for 2 months
Ageing potential: 2-3 years
Tasting notes: Brilliant, limpid, pale gold in color. A potently aromatic nose displaying varietal notes of fennel and green almond with white floral undertones. Silky and firm on the palate, with fine, elegant acidity conferring great length.
Serving suggestion: A lovely aperitif, it is also a perfect match for seafood, fresh or fried fish, and goes wonderfully with salads. Best served at 8–10ºC
Wine Information
Alcohol level: 13% vol.
pH: 3.26 g/L
Total acidity: 5.1 g/L (tartaric)
Residual sugar: 0.6 g/L
Vintage 2019
Excellent Vintage in Rioja – the ratification of the qualification as 'EXCELLENT' of the 2019 vintage, a milestone that had not occurred since 2011!
After a vegetative cycle with optimum ripening of the grapes, in recent months extraordinary results have been observed in the evaluation of the fermentation tanks, from which the Council's technicians have collected more than 4,500 samples, which have subsequently been tasted by a panel of 150 professionals.
Pablo Franco, director of the Control Body of the Regulatory Council, took stock of the 2019 campaign, referring to the excellent health and vegetative situation of the vineyard and the state of the bunches, loose, well aerated and accompanied by the moderate vigor of the plants. In Franco's words "the year was marked by the stability in the evolution of the vineyard, not exempt from certain very local incidents produced by meteorological phenomena of little general importance".
Regarding the resulting wines, the director of the Control Body of the Council highlighted their quality, underlining the extraordinary maturation in tannin: “a round and very silky tannin that has marked red wines since their elaboration, which is very pleasantly surprising for manifest itself now and especially for having these sensations in wines with a high polyphenolic load such as this year, where the IPTs define a marked structure, with intense colors. In turn, it is worth highlighting the consolidation of lighter tones in the color of rosé wines, with a predominant aromatic expression towards more floral notes. White wines are very expressive, highlighting their great volume on the palate, in line with what is seen in reds. The commitment to autochthonous varieties and the great evolution of the quality of their elaborations is also valued ”.
In the words of Pablo Franco, “there is no doubt that, according to the behavior of the vineyard and in turn what was discovered in the wines, the 2019 vintage is‘ THE harvest ’. A vintage that reflects the true mastery of time management by winegrowers and winemakers ”.
It should be remembered that the amount harvested in the 2019 harvest was around 385 million kg of grapes (of which 342 were red grapes and 43 were white grapes) and 267.27 million liters of the 2019 harvest obtained the certification as wines protected by the DOCa Rioja (22.11 for white, 12.50 for rosé and 233.08 for red).
