Bodega Alegre Valganon, Tinto

There is something immediately arresting about today's 2023 Alegre Valgañón Rioja: it tastes deeply rooted in Rioja's past while feeling entirely alive in the present. Vivid, fragrant, and invigorating, the wine layers ripe cherry and wild berry fruit with mountain herbs, orange peel, flowers, and a fine, dusty mineral character. Yet what makes it truly distinctive is not any single aroma or flavor, but the way it revives Rioja's oldest blending traditions with uncommon precision. Tempranillo provides structure, Garnacha contributes perfume and succulence, and a meaningful proportion of white grapes brings freshness, aromatic lift, and tension. The result is Rioja stripped of cosmetic excess and lazy, clock-punching technique—a deeply traditional wine that somehow never feels remotely old-fashioned.

The story begins in the tiny mountain village of Cuzcurrita de Río Tirón, in Rioja Alta, where husband-and-wife team Óscar Alegre and Eva Valgañón have quietly become two of the region's most compelling young growers. Rather than pursuing the heavily oaked, internationally styled Riojas that came to define much of the late twentieth century, they have looked backward, drawing inspiration from the field blends and village wines that once filled the region's cellars. Their vineyards are scattered among high-elevation parcels planted decades ago, many surrounded by forests and influenced by the cooling Atlantic climate that preserves freshness even in warm vintages. Farming is thoughtful and sustainable, yields remain naturally low, and every decision reflects a commitment to expressing place rather than recipe.

One of the estate's defining characteristics is its embrace of Rioja's historic mixed plantings. Before modern regulations and commercial pressures encouraged monoculture, it was common for Tempranillo to share vineyards with Garnacha, Mazuelo, Graciano, and even small amounts of white grapes. Rather than separating these varieties, Alegre Valgañón celebrates them. The white grapes are included not as a novelty, but because generations of growers understood that they contribute fragrance, energy, and balance. It is an old idea that suddenly feels remarkably contemporary, producing a Rioja of transparency and nuance rather than sheer power.

Winemaking follows the same philosophy of restraint. The fruit is harvested by hand, fermented with native yeasts, and aged primarily in large neutral oak and well-seasoned barrels that allow the vineyards to remain firmly at center stage. Extraction is gentle, oak influence is subtle, and alcohol never overwhelms the wine's natural freshness. The finished Rioja possesses a sense of harmony that recalls an earlier era, when elegance and drinkability mattered just as much as concentration.

Serve the 2023 Alegre Valgañón Rioja Tinto at approximately 60-62°F in a large Burgundy stem. Its combination of bright red fruit, savory herbs, vibrant acidity, and refined tannins makes it an inspired companion to chuletillas al sarmiento—the traditional Rioja dish of lamb chops grilled over old vine cuttings—where the wine's freshness and earthy complexity beautifully echo the smoky, herbal character of the meat. Brilliant ruby in the glass, the nose offers aromas of Bing cherry, wild raspberry, dried rose, orange peel, thyme, and crushed stone. The palate is energetic and finely textured, balancing juicy red fruit with subtle spice and mineral tension before finishing long, graceful, and unmistakably Rioja.