2019 Rio Madre Graciano, Rioja, Spain
Regular price $14.00
Unit price per
100% Graciano
While you are probably familiar with Rioja, you may find this wine surprising. Instead of the traditional Tempranillo, this offering from Bodegas y Viñedos Ilurce is made from Graciano, another indigenous Spanish grape. Historically, this grape has been used as a blending component in Tempranillo heavy Rioja styles. The Escudero family, however, realized the potential of their vineyards to be more than just purchased fruit for someone else’s wines. The Escudero family have been growing grapes and producing wine in the foothills of the Sierra de Yerga since the early 1990s. Until 2010, the majority of their fruit was sold off for bulk production. They started their own line of estate wines, and the Rio Madre (its flagship) represented a turning point for DOCa Rioja; it was one of the first brands of single varietal Graciano on the market sold at an entry level price. All of Ilurce's vineyards are traditionally dry farmed and cared for without the use of chemically synthesized fungicides, pesticides, herbicides, or elemental fertilizers.