Reserva 2013 1500ml Magnum

A Rioja of great density that retains its freshness. Sweet blackberry and dark plum compote come through openly, joined by vanilla and coconut from the barrel. Ripe tannin and lively acidity hold the structure together.

Fernando Remírez de Ganuza founded his winery in 1989 in Samaniego, in Rioja Alavesa, after spending twenty years as a vineyard broker getting to know every parcel in the region. Today the estate farms 76 hectares across nine municipalities, split into 246 individual parcels; 70 percent of the vines are over 70 years old, some over a hundred. The limestone soils of Rioja Alavesa give the Tempranillo its minerality.

93 percent Tempranillo, 4 percent Graciano and 3 percent extract from Viura and Malvasia skins, harvested from 60-year-old vines. Ageing lasted 26 months in new French oak barriques. In the cellar, the estate works with Spain's first mechanical sorting table, built by Fernando Remírez de Ganuza in 1989, which separates the sun-ripened shoulders of the grapes from the tips.

The tannin is ripe and polished, the acidity lively, with a fine fruit sweetness taking the lead. The finish lingers long, bringing back coconut and vanilla after the nose has shown blueberry, cinnamon, clove and cardamom.

Intense meat dishes: oriental-style lamb shanks with barberries and basmati rice or beef goulash with lemon emmer and beetroot. For a vegetarian option, try tacos with sweet plum and pak choi.

Bottled in a 1500-millilitre magnum, 14.5 percent alcohol, dry. Decant before serving and drink from a large glass. Cellar master Jesús Mendoza, with the estate since 1994 and chief oenologist since 2001, was named best Rioja winemaker in 2024 and 2025.