Rioja Alavesa is home to many of the best wines in the country. This area, bounded in the north by the Cantabrian mountains and in the south by the Ebro valley, boasts privileged conditions for Tempranillo grapes. Take, for instance, Lar de Paula Crianza 2018, a wine made by the Meruelo family that won gold medals at the Gilbert & Gaillard and Mundus Vini competitions. Explosion of primary aromas in the nose, with hints of forest fruits and toasty notes, and medium-bodied on the palate with smooth tannins, good balance and a fresh acidic twang.
Consumption features
Serving temperature
Consumption time
General features
Type of wine
Region
Grape variety
100% Tempranillo
Type of barrel
2- to 3--year-old French and American oak barrels
Barrel aging time
12 months
Capacity (cl)
75
Total acidity (g/l)
4.80
Sugar
<2
pH
3.38
Alcohol content (% vol.)
14.5
General Information
Lar de Paula Crianza 2018 is a single-varietal made from Tempranillo grapes from a vintage that produced wines with great ageing and laying-down potential. After careful sorting, the grapes were stemmed and pressed and the must was kept at 16º C for 2 to 3 days. After that it was fermented in stainless steel vats at between 28 and 30ºC for between 10 and 12 days. The resulting wine was aged for 12 months in French and American oak barrels between 2 and 3 years old and further matured in the bottle for at least 4 months before being released onto the market.
In 2004 Fernando Meruelo started up his winery called Lar de Paula (the name is dedicated to his daughter Paula) in the heart of Rioja Alavesa, in the town of Elvillar de Álava. Here the winery began transforming Tempranillo grapes into magnificent and modern Rioja wines that soon gained a foothold in the best international markets, exporting nearly half of its production.
The vineyards are protected in the north by the Cantabrian mountains and border in the south with the Ebro valley, where the climate helps produce grapes of good quality. The next generation of the Mereulos have now joined the family business and their wines have already picked up a host of prizes and distinctions.
Lar de Paula Crianza 2018 (D.O.Ca. Rioja) is ideal with Ibérico pork fillet in mushroom sauce or ossobuco in red wine.
Creators' opinion
Deep violet-red colour with maroon edges. Explosion of primary aromas with complex, lingering notes of forest fruit and toast. Medium-bodied with smooth but pleasantly intense tannins. Balanced palate with a fresh acidic bite.