Our first tour to Rioja has kicked off. As we headed straight from Bilbao airport to the famous and very historic La Rioja Alta bodega in Haro.
Lorena Alvez hosted our visit, which was truly exceptional. La Rioja Alta is without doubt one of the leading wineries in the region and is rated a First Growth in Tim Atkin’s latest Rioja classification.
We began by visiting their in-house cooperage where it is always a joy to understand the principles behind barrel making. Due to the estate’s continued growth they have built a more modern facility a kilometre away from Haro and have converted the original building in the Barrio de la Estación into a magnificent visitor experience. We toured both barrel cellars and saw the huge vats dating back to 1890, which are no longer used. Lorena expertly brought alive the history, philosophy and quality of the estate.
We then headed for lunch in their beautiful comedor upstairs and snacked on some croquetas, stuffed peppers, morcilla washed down with their white wines from Rías Baixas. Then to table for a traditional lunch: stuffed courgette flowers, followed by unctiously rich beef cheeks accompanied by their Alberdi Crianza, the Ardanza Reserva, culminating in their magnificent 904 Reserva.
