In the glass
Aroma: red cherry, dried herb, tobacco, cedar, balsamic
Palate: savoury red fruit, fine tannin, spice, leather
Reborn as a Gran Reserva, Vina Arana is the more elegant, fresher and more savoury of the house's classic pair, with a touch of French oak adding finesse.
What it pairs with
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Cordero asado al sarmiento
Vine-shoot-roasted suckling lamb is the canonical Rioja match; the wine's resolved tannins frame the sweet fat. -
Chuleton de buey a la brasa
Find chuleton de buey a la brasa on TableJourney →
A thick aged-beef chop over embers meets the wine's savoury oak and grip. -
Jamon iberico
Cured Iberian ham echoes the wine's dried-cherry and leather register. -
Roast guinea fowl
Lighter game meets Arana's elegant, savoury frame.
History
Once a Reserva, Vina Arana was relaunched as a Gran Reserva in the 2010s, positioned as the more elegant counterpoint to the fruitier Ardanza.
- 1976 — Vina Arana established
- 2012 — Relaunched as a Gran Reserva
Facts
- Producer
- La Rioja Alta S.A.
- Grapes
- Tempranillo (95%), Graciano (5%)
- Classification
- DOCa Rioja
- Oak
- Around 3 years in American and French oak, then long bottle ageing
- ABV
- 13.5%
- Price
- EUR 30 to 50 at retail
- Drinking window
- 8 to 25 from vintage
- First vintage
- 1976
Scores
- Tim Atkin 94 (2015 vintage, reviewed 2022)