Map of Navarra Source: https://www.decanter.com
The culture of Navarra, Spain, reflects the imposing character of its inhabitants. The Autonomous Community is a mixture of the Basque culture in the northern mountains and the Mediterranean culture in the southern part. Currently its capital is Pamplona - in Basque territory - and although Pompey conquered it in 74 BC, neither the Romans, nor the Moors, nor the Visigoths could subjugate the Basques. Not far from there, Charlemagne lost his only battle in Iberia: The Battle of Roncesvalles, when local warriors ambushed French troops in that difficult mountainous area of Navarre in 768 AD. Much later, in the 16th century, Joan of Albret, Protestant queen of Navarre, supported the French Huguenots and religious reform while across her border The Inquisition was at its peak, and even her husband, the king of Navarre, asked her to convert to Catholicism but she refused. On the contrary, she turned Navarre into a refuge for the Protestants. Her strong spirit is a common thread that we see in this area that not only continues in the people of Navarra today, but in the unique wines it has produced for centuries which continue to be wines of strong character.
As in many parts of Europe, Navarra has experienced the influence of wine since the 2nd century BC when the Romans began to plant grapes vines during their conquest. However, the relevance of these vineyards began in the Middle Ages, when the kingdom of Navarra extended from Bordeaux to Barcelona and thousands of pilgrims traveled along the Camino de Santiago discovering its high-quality wines. Although the Navarra appellation lives in the shadow of its neighbor - the DOCa Rioja - they have much in common in terms of climatic influences, their old Garnacha and Tempranillo vineyards and a shared history.
Both wine-growing areas took advantage of their proximity to France during the damaging years of phylloxera, selling wine to the French to consume and bottle. However, the arrival of this pest to Spain in the 20th century (as we saw in the second Blog), seriously affected the vineyards of Navarra, which today are a third of their original size.
Grenache has been the queen grape of this wine-growing area and when the DO was named in 1933, it was already known for its excellent rosés. However, with the replanting of vineyards, Tempranillo became the main variety followed by Grenache and other French grapes such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Chardonnay, which have been present since the 12th century.
The region has a great diversity of landscapes that occur in the more than 100 kilometers that separate the north, located at the foot of the Pyrenees mountains, from the Ebro river basin to the south. Navarra offers a wide range of climates: from Atlantic in the north to continental in the center and Mediterranean in the south. Within these categories, five zones with unique microclimates and soils are distinguished.
The Atlantic, Low Mountain region stands out in the east, with greater influence from the Pyrenees and 65% Grenache. Tierra Estella , in the northwest, features steep hills and the most notable Atlantic influence. In Valdizarbe , in the center-north, the presence of the Camino de Santiago, mountain ranges and the Arga River characterize the area, this being the most humid.
In the continental category, Ribera Alta, in the middle strip, stands out as a dry and semi-arid area, with a predominance of Tempranillo and Graciano.
The area of Mediterranean influence - Ribera Baja - in the south of Navarra, in the Ebro valley, has always been the area of greatest production, with longer and more favorable vegetative periods for the vine.
Viña Vieja - Source: Viña Zorzal
It is located in this last area of Ribera Baja in the Viña Zorzal winery, which we import to Mexico. They make wines from vineyards in various parts of the DO - Ribera Baja: Corella, Cintruénigo, Fitero; Ribera Alta: Larraga and Baja Montaña: Lerga and Eslava, in order to represent the diversity that Navarra is known for. They make, according to The Oxford Companion to Wine, “World-class wines from old Grenache vineyards.”
In the Viña Zorzal project, they rescue the native Navarrese varieties and make authentic varietal wines. Since its beginning, its philosophy has focused on the recovery of old vineyards in the area - taking advantage of the wealth of vines that many abandoned in recent decades and the complexity of climates and soils. Today they make a wine from one of the oldest vineyards in all of Navarra - 115 years old and never affected by phylloxera.
Navarra is an extraordinary region with a history of attempted conquest, in which not even phylloxera could obtain a total victory and its wines demonstrate a spirit like its people - strong and full of personality.
To learn more about Viña Zorzal and Navarra, follow these links:
