New-wave Rioja

What an enjoyable tasting! To be sure, all these wines shared the ‘Rioja’ label, but then their paths diverged. For us as tasters it was an absorbing, delicious journey through the contemporary DOCa, its aspect and altitudes, its varieties and vinifications. What is happening in Rioja is so much more varied and exciting than the wine textbooks would have you believe.

Given the eclecticism of the wines that Decanter requested for this tasting (see ‘Entry criteria’, below), we tasted according to vintage, starting with the youngest, then with unoaked before oaked. What was it that we enjoyed so much? According to Diana Rollan: ‘A diverse range of styles, based on quality over quantity of oak’. Beth Willard: ‘I was looking for, and scored more generously, wines that offered floral notes, red cherry, crunchy acidity and a focus on fruit, even if there was no oak present.’

Rarely did we comment on or criticise heavy-handed use of oak. Further, there was fine expression of place – and freshness. As Rollan noted: ‘A common denominator for all these wines is the freshness, minerality and the balance above all, versus [the traditional measure of] oak ageing as the primary indicator of quality.’ The different fermentation and ageing processes, and containers used in production, also potentially offered different texture and palate weights.

The tasting certainly reflected the diversity of Rioja today – even simply in terms of grape varieties. There was a Maturana and a Mazuelo