Viura

Accolades

2019
95 Points - Tim Atkin MW
93+ Points - Robert Parker

2018
94 Points - Robert Parker

2017
93 Points - Robert Parker

Tasting Notes

A wine with great aromatic intensity in which floral and fruit notes stand out in the foreground. These are combined with well-integrated secondary notes of wood, balsamic and wild herbs. On the palate, its lush acidity stands out on a silky mid palate with a pleasant and lingering finish.

Winemaking Notes

Along with Garnacha Blanca and Malvasia, Viura has always been a recognized white variety by the Consejo Regulador of Rioja. Around 1993, Abel and Maite owned a few old plots of Viura and wanted to plant some new vines. Abel approached the Consejo for permission to plant and was refused. The Consejo argued that enough white varieties had already been planted.

Abel decided to graft cuttings of Viura onto red rootstocks to circumvent their decision. When the Consejo discovered this, rather than cause a scene, they just told him he was crazy because red wine was more valuable. They allowed him to leave the new vines in.

The majority of Viura made in Rioja is for high volume wine with no serious focus on quality. Abel and Maite wanted to focus on quality and strive for the best expression of the variety that they could. They now farm around twelve plots of Viura in Rioja with the oldest roughly 100 years of age.

All Abel Mendoza white wines are handled in the same manner. The fruit is sorted and pressed in a pneumatic press. The juice goes into tank for a brief settling period and after one day is racked off into new French oak barrels for fermentation. After fermentation, the wines stay in barrel for 5 - 6 months. Batonnage is done every 2 - 3 days. After barrel maturation, the wines are blended into tank, stabilized and bottled.

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