Rioja DOCa [ree-OH-hah] | Wine Terms

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Rioja DOCa
[ree-OH-hah]

One of Spain’s most important wine regions, this DOCA is in northern Spain around the town of Logroño and along the Ebro River. The name comes from Río Oja, a tributary of the Ebro River. Established in 1926, Rioja was the first DO, and in 1991 it became the first DOCa (Spain’s top category). Wine has been made in this region for over 2,500 years—prior to the Roman occupation. The TABLE WINES from the Rioja DOCa are some of Spain’s best and most famous. The area comprises about 135,000 vineyard acres situated in the provinces of Alava and Navarra, as well as La Rioja. This DOCa is divided into three subzones—La Rioja Alavesa is the northwestern portion, La Rioja Alta in the southwestern section, and La Rioja Baja in the eastern segment. The cooler, wetter climate of the two western subzones produces more delicate wines. La Rioja Alta generally produces the best wines, followed by those from La Rioja Alavesa. The hotter, drier easterly La Rioja Baja produces bigger, more ALCOHOLIC wines. Rioja wines, which tend to be made very much in a BORDEAUX style, are greatly influenced by winemaking practices introduced by French families who migrated to Rioja in the late 1800s after PHYLLOXERA struck the Bordeaux vineyards. The extensive use of American oak BARRIQUES (called barricas locally) for AGING still exists, although somewhat less aggressively than in the past; French oak use is now on the rise. The American OAK imparts the familiar vanilla characteristic that’s associated with Rioja wines. Red wines make up 75 to 80 percent of the total production, and TEMPRANILLO is the primary red grape used. Garnacha Tinta (GRENACHE), Mazuelo (CARIGNAN), and GRACIANO are also allowed. In Rioja, CRIANZA wines must have 2 years of aging, with 1 year in oak; RESERVA wines must have 3 years of aging, with 1 year in oak; and GRAN RESERVA must have 5 years of aging, with 2 years in oak. There’s a small quantity of ROSÉ wine made from these same grapes. A limited amount of white wine is made from Viura (MACABEO), R Garnacha Blanca (GRENACHE), and MALVASIA. In the past, the white wines from Rioja have also been heavily oaked, but fresher, crisper wines are now the style.

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