The Train Station in Haro
The winds from the Cantabrian Sea blow towards the mountains surrounding Rioja Alta and Rioja Alavesa, colliding with the Sierra de Cantabria - the mountain range that protects Rioja from the same cold maritime winds. These breezes that bring humidity and freshness to Rioja and the vineyards in northern Spain are the same ones that blow towards Bordeaux from the Bay of Biscay. These two places known for their excellent wines, capable of remaining decades in the cellar, are located just a few hours by road. Although the altitude, soils and climate are different, the vineyards breathe the same air of the gulf, an extension of the Atlantic Ocean.
As we saw in the third blog, phylloxera was something that totally changed the wine industry in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. And the history of Bordeaux, like that of many others in Europe, was almost extinguished by the same nefarious insect. The period of time from the appearance of the plague until the solution was found lasted more than twenty years, combined with the process of replanting and grafting the vineyards. Throughout all this time, the epidemic continued to move across the continent, destroying vineyards without discrimination and forcing winemakers to take extreme measures. Two regions that we know for their high-quality wines - Rioja and Bordeaux - decided to join forces to counteract the ravages of this plague.
For several centuries these regions had a joint history. As early as the 18th century, the priest Manuel Quintano made a report on the vineyards and wines of Alavesa in order to increase their quality and export them. He traveled to Bordeaux to learn the style of their wines and upon his return to Rioja, he shared this learning with local producers. His project was very successful especially in England. However, the workers protested when they realized that the success only benefited him and they immediately abandoned him.
Around 1840, a Frenchman named Jean Pineau arrived with the purpose of teaching the Spanish some modern practices in their vineyards. However, this project did not work either. A few years later in the 1850s, the Marquis de Riscal and Jean Pineau, attempted to modernize Alavesa wine using new and scientific information, and making Medoc Alavés - a Rioja wine from Alavesa in the Bordeaux style. However, for political reasons its success only lasted a few years.
Label from a bottle of Medoc Alaves (Source: www.rarewineco.com)
Although both places have experimented with the exchange of information and wine trade, it was not until 1863 when the relationship between Rioja and Bordeaux was cemented. That same year the phylloxera problems had already started in Bordeaux, but the plague had not yet reached Rioja. What did arrive was the train to Haro in the heart of Rioja and on the same railway thousands of liters of Rioja left to be bottled in Bordeaux, thus alleviating the lack of wine that the French experienced due to the plague. Furthermore, to easily export to Bordeaux, many wineries built their premises near the train station, making Haro the place with the highest concentration of wineries over one hundred years old in the world.
It is said that there is no ill wind that doesn't blow some good and this may be the case of phylloxera in the Rioja-Bordeaux relationship, as it led its inhabitants to finally form a lasting relationship. The learning of the French style by the Spanish resulted in an explosion of Rioja wine production with the influence of the Bordeaux style of extended aging in barrels, how to find the ideal terroir for the vineyards and several other factors. From this experience some of the most classic wineries in Rioja were born such as CVNE, La Rioja Alta, Bodegas Franco-Españolas among others - some of which have protected the legacy of the style of that time. The winery best known for aging its wines by aging much more extensively than the others, López de Heredia, releases their Gran Reservas at a minimum twenty years after the harvest, was also established around this time. Their wines are transcendent! Now Rioja is associated with the most emblematic wines of Spain. The proximity of these two places that are so important for wine has been beneficial for both. The fact that Bordeaux and Rioja breathe the same Atlantic air - a little salty and fresh from the sea - is only part of the great joint story that these wines - some of the most beloved in the world!
