Fincas Valdemar Gran Reserva 2016
93
Tim Atkin
A Rioja Gran Reserva from a leading name
Médaille d'Argent
Decanter World Wine Awards
Valdemar is a Rioja icon: its track record dates back more than 100 years and it’s still run by the family that founded it. Ana and Jesús Martínez Bujanda, members of the fifth generation, continue to demonstrate the family’s mastery of long ageing periods. Find out for yourself with Fincas Valdemar Gran Reserva 2016, a fabulous Rioja that’s the result of five generations of dedication to excellence. It’s only available from Vinoselección.
Consumption features
Serving temperature
Consumption time
General features
Type of wine
Region
Grape variety
4% Graciano, 8% Garnacha tinta, 4% Maturana Tinta, 84% Tempranillo
Type of barrel
French and American oak barrels.
Type of bottle
Burgundy
Barrel aging time
24 months
Capacity (cl)
75
Alcohol content (% vol.)
14
General Information
Fincas Valdemar Gran Reserva 2016 is made from Tempranillo (84%), enhanced with other local varieties: 8% Garnacha 4% Graciano and 4% Maturana. The grapes come from a selection of old plots located in Rioja Alavesa, and the resulting wine has been aged for 24 months in French and American oak barrels.
Located in Oyón (Rioja Alavesa), Valdemar is a firm that’s been around for more than a hundred years, ever since the first member of the family took up grape growing in 1889. Its recent history began in 1985, when Jesús Martínez Bujanda launched the Conde Valdemar brand and aimed for a fully modern style of wine with more intensity and colour than the classic Riojas. The firm is now run by his children Ana and Jesús Martínez Bujanda. They’ve inherited the previous generation’s pioneering and nonconformist streak and continue to enrich the product range with new wines.
Innovation and cutting-edge technology are this winery’s hallmarks. For instance, Valdemar was a pioneer in Europe in introducing temperature control in fermentation tanks, as well as adopting more advanced systems for micro-oxygenating tanks and devoting a specific building to malolactic fermentation equipped with underfloor heating to enable the process to start naturally. This firm’s wines are made from grapes grown on its own extensive vineyards and are widely distributed.
Fincas de Valdemar Gran Reserva 2016 (D.O.Ca. Rioja) is perfect with tuna cooked with lots of onions or fillet of beef.
Tasting notes
Displays a vibrant, vivid, intensely pigmented ruby-red colour. Intense aromas of ripe fruits blended with sweet spices and a touch of vanilla. Subtle notes of cedar and fallen leaves give it added complexity. Pleasant and velvety on attack with prominent flavours of cedar, along with a nicely integrated acidity and a long, pleasing finish.
Creators' opinion
This wine embodies the richness of our heritage combining the unmistakeable character of Rioja with careful processing that enhances its elegance, complexity and laying down potential.
The winery
Founded in 1889, Valdemar is one of the oldest and most important wineries in Spain, a driving force behind the Rioja Alavesa we know today and revolutionary in its concepts. A house currently led by the fifth generation of the Martínez Bujanda family, whose success lies in the perfect combination of historical expertise blended with constant research to achieve the highest quality.
In 1985, Jesús Martínez Bujanda began a new chapter that transformed Valdemar into one of the most innovative wineries of the time: he launched wines onto the market with more intensity and color than the classic Riojas, fully embracing modernity. Additionally, this winery has been a pioneer in the use of temperature control during production and in the fermentation of Viura whites in wood.
Valdemar has developed a wide range of high-quality wines, known for their consistency and great distribution. These wines originate from an extensive estate-owned vineyard: 275 hectares; and are characterized by their long and magnificent aging processes.