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Why Rioja Tastes the Way It Does
Why is Rioja aged in oak, and why do vanilla, coconut and spice seem so closely associated with it? The answer lies in a series of changes that began more than two centuries ago, when Rioja's winemakers looked north to Bordeaux. Those familiar flavours were not always part of the region's wines.
October is Rioja Wine Month, so we're taking a closer look at what makes the region's wines distinctive. Few things have shaped the taste of Rioja more than oak, but the story of how it got there is rather more interesting than you might expect.
The story begins in the 18th century, when Don Manuel Esteban Quintano Quintano (so good they named him twice) travelled to Bordeaux and discovered techniques that would eventually change Rioja.
Nobody Expects the Spanish Inquisition
Don Manuel came from a family of winemakers with vineyards in Labastida in Rioja Alavesa. He was not sure that he wanted to become a winemaker. Instead, he thought he might follow in his uncles' footsteps by joining the church (and the Spanish Inquisition, which no one expected).
In 1782 he became a Catholic priest, completing his studies at the commune of Bayonne in Bordeaux, France. Whilst there he discovered the wines of Bordeaux which, unlike Rioja wines, both travelled and aged well.
The vineyards of Rioja are on the route of the popular pilgrimage to el Camino de Santiago. The pilgrimage takes believers to the city of Santiago de Compostela where, it is said, the body of Saint James lies. For thousands of years pilgrims have sampled the local wines on their way through the region and spread the word about their quality.
Since the Phoenicians first brought grapes to the region in the 11th century BC, wine had been foot-trodden and fermented in large underground clay pots.
These methods meant that the wine did not travel or age well. It spoiled easily and quickly turned to vinegar.
Bordeaux Does it Better
Back in Bordeaux, Don Manuel set about learning what the Bordelais did differently.
He discovered several techniques, of which the most important were improved hygiene and ageing wine in oak barriques. When he returned home, he encouraged his brothers to try them in the family winery. It took several years of trial and error, but with each vintage the quality and longevity of their wine improved.
In 1790 King Carlos IV granted permission to the Quintano family to export ten barrels to the Americas. The recipients reported that the wine was the best they'd ever received and more orders from South America followed.
The neighbouring winemakers in Rioja looked on with envy. Rather than embrace the new French methods, they created regulations that made ageing wine in French barrels unprofitable. The subsequent war with Napoleon in 1808 killed any remaining interest in the new methods.
The Riojans continued to make wine the rustic way, and no doubt they would have continued to do so were it not for a Peruvian chap called Luciano Murrieta y García-Ortiz de Lemoine.
Luciano spent much of his early life in London, where he became familiar with the wines of Bordeaux. Later he settled in Logroño, Rioja, having followed his good friend Baldomero Espartero, the Duke of Vitoria, out of exile.
Noting that Rioja wines were not as prestigious as those from Bordeaux, Luciano travelled there to discover why. The techniques he found were the same as those uncovered by Don Manuel some 80 years earlier: destemming, soft pressing, better hygiene and, most of all, ageing in barriques.
Why Is Rioja Aged in Oak?
Following his trip, Luciano purchased hundreds of small oak barrels in which to age his wine. One important difference was that Luciano used cheaper American oak rather than French oak.
The result was widely praised. This new style of Rioja shared characteristics with the wines of Bordeaux, including dark fruit, smokiness and spice, but American oak would go on to give Rioja flavours of its own. Vanilla and coconut in particular became closely associated with traditionally aged Rioja.
His success inspired other winemakers to follow his example.
Rioja's Golden Age
In the second half of the 19th century Rioja entered a golden age.
Powdery mildew struck the vineyards of France in 1847 and exports from Bordeaux fell. This decline was compounded when the phylloxera louse arrived from America in 1862, destroying entire vineyards.
Négociants from Bordeaux rushed to find an alternative wine with which to replace their lost supply. Rioja was an obvious substitute. The new railway to Haro opened in 1863, making transport to Bordeaux much easier.
Rioja had arrived.
Throughout this period Luciano continued to improve the quality of his wines and share his knowledge with other producers. In 1852 he purchased Castillo Ygay, regarded as one of the finest Rioja houses, and in 1872 King Amadeo made Luciano the Marquis de Murrieta to thank him for his efforts in raising the region's quality and prestige.
But the good times could not last.
Phylloxera reached Rioja in 1899. It wasn't as devastating as in France, but by this point the Bordelais had learned to graft vines onto American rootstock to overcome the problem and, in the process, recovered their lost export markets.
Two world wars, the Spanish Civil War and a 36-year dictatorship meant that consumer interest in Rioja remained muted for much of the 20th century. This changed in the 1970s with a superb vintage and a return to democracy.
What Does Oak Add to Rioja?
Many of the flavours we now think of as "classic" Rioja, including coconut, vanilla, cocoa and caramel, are associated with American oak. French oak tends to give a different impression, while some Rioja sees little or no oak at all.
That creates an interesting contradiction. We often describe winemakers using French oak, or even no oak, as making a modern style of Rioja. In fact, those wines may in one sense be more "classic", because they are closer to the wines made before American oak became such a defining part of Rioja's identity.
If you want to understand how oak fits alongside Rioja's grapes, three zones and Crianza, Reserva and Gran Reserva classifications, read our Complete Guide to Rioja Wine.
Or explore the different styles for yourself in our Rioja wine range.
