January 2025 Crianza Club

Villota Selvanevada 2022 Tinto, Rioja Regular Price: $23.99 Club Price: $ 20.64 Buy Now

Picture yourself having been magically transported to a vineyard in Spain’s Rioja region.  The vineyard sits in a river bend of the Ebro river and is full of gorgeous vines loaded with plump black grape clusters and adorned with fall leaves turning red.  It’s the golden hour, and the sun’s rays are shining through the branches of a majestic old oak tree.  Under the tree is a long table set with white linen tablecloths and wine glasses.  The wine growers speak, and alongside gorgeous nibbles of local fare, you get to try an array of white and red wines, whilst sitting amidst the vines that produced them.  A dream, you ask yourself?  Well, as it turns out, the scene pictured above was one I got to experience in September of last year.  As a wine lover, it was certainly hard NOT to like any wine poured in such a setting. As a wine professional, I was able to determine objectively that the talent of the growers and winemakers at Villota is the ability to put the magic of that setting into the bottle. 

Let’s dive in.

The tree in the scene above is part of the vineyards of the Finca San Rafael owned by the Pérez-Villota family.  These vineyards span across a set of down-sloping terraces in a bend of the river Ebro, about 15 minutes north of the town of Logroño in the Rioja Alavesa subregion of the Rioja DOC. 

Soils here are iron-rich clay with a high proportion of limestone.  Owing to the fact that this section of Rioja was once under the ancient giant version of today’s Ebro river, the soil is littered with all different sizes of round riverstones.

Planted in the vineyard are Graciano, Mazuelo and Tempranillo, all grapes that go into the blend of this wine.  The vines are 60 or more years old, goblet trained as is customary in Spain, and dry-farmed.  The Pérez-Villota family cares deeply about their land and vines, and refrain from the use of systemic herbicides, fungicides, pesticides, or fertilizers.  We were lucky enough to be there while fruit were on the vines, and the quality of the grape clusters and the taste of the fruit were outstanding. 

The Pérez-Villota family is quite famous.  For decades, they grew grapes as partners of CVNE’s famous Contino label.  Co-founded in 1973 by the Rioja wine giant CVNE and the Pérez-Villota family, Contino was a new venture focused on single vineyard “chateau-style” wines with wines from each plot of grapes vinified separately. For decades, Contino has been lauded for its quality.  Wine scores as we know them today do not date back to 1973, so there are no scores on a 100 point scale for early Contino vintages, but over more recent years, Contino has consistently scored in the mid to high 90 point range.  In 2013, unafraid to make great into even greater, the Pérez-Villota family decided to part ways with CVNE, starting their own Villota label.  Their Selvanevada is an entry level red-blend in a portfolio that has many wines that easily reach the quality level of Contino, proving that the Pérez-Villota family has been able to continue doing the right things to put their terroir in bottles.  

This wine is a blend of Tempranillo, Graciano, and Mazuelo.  Save for Garnacha, this is a very “classical” Rioja blend, and one I find very appealing.  As a side note, the 2022 vintage in Rioja, while being rated as “excellent”, was challenging.  It was the hottest year on record in Rioja (my wife and I were actually there and it was HOT!!).  In many vineyards, it got so hot that the vines started to shut down, preventing the grapes from fully ripening. Due to its location right on the banks of the Ebro, and a water table fed directly by the river, I believe that Finca San Rafael was spared this fate and achieved exceptional ripeness. This shows in the wine.  The black cherry and tannic power of Tempranillo are there, moderated by cassis and darker fruit notes that Graciano and Mazuelo bring.  The greener, stemmier side Graciano expresses in cooler vintages is not present, likely owing to the high degree of ripeness achieved in this hot harvest.  Subtle use of second and third year oak merely supports development of the fruit but doesn't really add oak notes.  The result is a fresh, purple pour into the glass.  The nose is a chalky black cherry with a hint of black cherry greek yogurt.  The palate is a rush of focused dark/bitter cherry that quickly blossoms into a mix of crushed dried red flower petals (rose, hibiscus) and faded dried sage.  With time in glass, the nose opens up to include balsamic and licorice notes.  The wine is focused and fruit forward, yet not opulently fruity. Tannins are pronounced but well balanced, especially given it’s only a two year old wine.  While Gutierrez (see below) says 'drink now', I would actually lay down a few bottles to see how the wine mellows out (not a heavy ask at this price point.)  Owing to second and third year wood, there are no wood notes save a hint of smokiness and black licorice. At 14.5% alcohol, you might think it’s hot, but it’s not.  Villota’s other offerings (which we will bring in the future) are admittedly bigger, fatter, more plush and luscious.  But for its price, the Selvanevada is meant to be humble and straightforward.  It achieves the translation from terroir to bottle very well, and outshines Rioja competitors at this price with its fruit forward honesty.  

‘Fruity nose but not yet a fruit bomb. I like the purity and the fleshy cherry core, with notes of blueberries, dark plums and dried hibiscus. Fresh and nicely chewy with a fleshy core of mid-palate fruit. Flavorful, medium-length finish with loads of fruit.” Luis Gutierrez, 91 points

I would pair this with a classical Riojan charcuterie board with chorizo, a pate, some pickled items, a few olives, and fresh white bread dipped in mild olive oil.  This way, you will conjure up the scene I got to enjoy under the oak tree by the river, but without all the hassle of getting there.

On a commercial footnote, we are the only California retailer to carry this vintage of this wine and we have committed to a large buy of this wine.  This means there is plenty for you if you love it. It also means we appreciate your sharing this with friends and family so we can sell through our allocation.

Burgo Viejo 2019 Crianza, Rioja Regular Price: $21.99 Club Price: $ 18.69 Buy Now

Burgo Viejo, located in the town of Alfaro on the far southeast corner of Rioja. Their winemaker, with the no-doubt-about-it-Basque-sounding name - Gorka Extebarria, is very enthusiastic about the new release: Red ruby colored wine with violet tones, this well-balanced offer comes with a sturdy structure and multiple layers of black fruit, vanilla and coconut flavors. Powerful, complex and silky smooth, this classic styled Rioja comes at a bargain price and nothing short of greatness. It also consistently gets impressive reviews for the price.

In the late 1980’s, six viticultural families came together as a mutually-supportive collective dedicated to fine Riojan winemaking thus Burgo Viejo was born. Today the collective comprises 16 families; their estates represent over 200 hectares of vineyard and contain vines that average around 30 years of age with some as old as 90 years of age.

The wine we have selected for January’s Crianza Wine Club is their flagship Rioja Crianza. The wine is 90% Tempranillo and 10% Graciano, the latter for brightness and acidity. The wine is then aged for 12 months in 90% American and 10% French oak barrels; in other words, a total classic. Plush black berries and plum notes intermingle with savory spice while the finish showcases supple coconut and chocolatey coffee notes.

Veterans of the Crianza Club will remember this wine from years past, but we liked this vintage so much we had to book it again. Pair with aged cheeses and lamb or pork roasts that contain red peppers, pimenton, garlic and saffron.