Bodegas Queirón

Bodegas Queirón is the most personal winemaking project of the Pérez Cuevas family, developed in Quel, its hometown, in the Rioja Oriental subzone. Located in the heart of the historic Barrio de Bodegas of Quel —a unique complex of cellars carved into the rock since the 18th century— the winery represents a synthesis of memory, terroir and a contemporary vision of wine.

Queirón was born as the culmination of a long-held dream by Gabriel Pérez, a pioneering grower and winemaker in this part of Rioja, with a family tradition linked to viticulture spanning four generations. The project highlights a historically wine-growing area, with documents proving vine cultivation in Quel dating back to at least 1327. The winery is architecturally integrated into the historic district, maintaining the traditional gravity-flow winemaking system through luceras, adapted to modern technical requirements.

The vineyard heritage of Bodegas Queirón is based on estate-owned vineyards recovered over more than 25 years, located around Quel and on the slopes of the Sierra de Yerga, at altitudes reaching 800 meters. These are mostly dry-farmed plots with poor soils and low yields, trained in bush vines and cultivated with a respectful, balanced viticulture adapted to the environment.

The historic grape varieties of Rioja are the core of the project: Garnacha —especially relevant for its century-old tradition in Quel—, Tempranillo, Graciano and Tempranillo Blanco, all worked with a clear focus on expressing terroir.

Queirón combines classicism and innovation. Winemaking is based on minimal intervention, gravity flow, and the precise use of materials such as stainless steel, oak and clay amphorae, depending on each wine. The goal is to preserve the identity of each parcel and reflect the uniqueness of the landscape of Quel, recovering ancestral techniques with a contemporary perspective.

The winery structures its range around wines deeply linked to place. Mi Lugar is the village wine interpretation, reflecting the ensemble of high-altitude vineyards in Quel. Queirón de Gabriel, the first wine of the project, pays tribute to its founder from a classic and elegant perspective. El Arca, identified as a Single Vineyard wine, comes from century-old Garnacha vines and connects with Rioja’s ancestral viticulture. The Ensayos Capitales series acts as a creative laboratory, exploring experimental vinifications and minority grape varieties.