La Rioja Alta have released the 2019 vintage of their much-loved Viña Ardanza Rioja Reserva this morning, and it's an absolute corker. Tasting it, we were reminded of every previous great vintage, and of why we loved this wine from the first time we tasted it, in the early '90s. We suggest grabbing this offer with both hands, excellent value as always at just £240 per dozen in bond.
One of the most reliable performers, Ardanza Reserva receives total ageing as long as many Gran Reservas from other Bodegas and easily competes with them, doubly so in a top vintage like this one. 2019 is considered to be amongst the top three vintages of this century, alongside 2001 and 2015, with balance and freshness being the defining characteristics of this new release. When Ardanza was first made back in 1942, it was labelled as a ‘Burgundy style wine’ and put in the now famous Burgundy bottle.
The 2019 shows all the elegance and finesse for which Ardanza is renowned. We found exotic notes of vanilla and coconut from the American oak, balanced by fresh, herbal, spice and floral aromas including dill, clove, and the beautifully fresh blackcurrant fruit, with some crushed-rock mineral character too. In the words of winemaker Julio Sáenz “An exceptional vintage, one of the best in our history, concluding an extraordinary decade for Viña Ardanza. This wine offers great complexity and aging potential. I believe it is the Viña Ardanza that will improve the most in the coming years.”
A blend of over 30-year-old Tempranillo (80%) grown on steep high altitude clay-limestone soils in La Cuesta (Fuenmayor) and Montecillo (Cenicero), and 17-year-old Garnacha (20%) grown at 550 metres above sea-level in deep pebble-rich terrains in La Pedriza (Tudelilla-Rioja Oriental). The grapes are cluster selected and hand-harvested before being optically sorted before fermentation which lasts 17 days, followed by a natural malolactic fermentation. The Tempranillo is aged for 36 months and the Garnacha for 30 months in seasoned American oak barrels made in their own cooperage. They were traditionally racked by candlelight 5 times before being bottled in December 2023.
Offered en primeur, available for delivery by June 2025.
| RED | 2019 | La Rioja Alta - Vina Ardanza Rioja Reserva | Double Magnums | £122 per bottle | La Rioja Alta Vina Ardanza Rioja Reserva 2019 / / Double Magnums £122 per bottle |
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| RED | 2019 | La Rioja Alta - Vina Ardanza Rioja Reserva | 75cl | £240 per case of 12 | La Rioja Alta Vina Ardanza Rioja Reserva 2019 / / 75cl £240 per case of 12 |
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Tasting Notes"No 2018 was produced, so after the 2017 I tasted last year, we jumped to the 2019 Viña Ardanza Reserva, produced with a blend of 80% Tempranillo and 20% Garnacha. It fermented destemmed in stainless steel and aged in American oak barrels, 36 months for the Tempranillo and 30 months for Garnacha, and was blended before bottling. 2019 is a very good year for them, a small crop of powerful and concentrated wines when they produced all their brands, an exception. This is spicy, structured, balanced and powerful in this warm year, reaching the customary 14.5% alcohol and keeping a pH of 3.54 and 5.5 grams of acidity. It's still very young and undeveloped, with the classical profile, generous in American oak aromas and flavors that should slowly integrate in the wine with years in bottle. For them, 2019 means a change in Ardanza, less spicy (but still quite spicy, with clove, vanilla and tobacco leaves) and with more fresh fruit from the Garnacha. But the year is a modern version of 2015. 500,000 bottles produced. It was bottled in December 2023. No 2023 or 2024 will be produced either. 2025-2038. 94 points." Luis Gutierrez, Wine Advocate, Feb '25 |
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| RED | 2019 | La Rioja Alta - Vina Ardanza Rioja Reserva | Magnum | £258 per case of 6 | La Rioja Alta Vina Ardanza Rioja Reserva 2019 / / Magnum £258 per case of 6 |
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