RIOJA WINEPRODUCTION

By

Antonio Maciá Soro

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o A Special Wine Like most of the great viticulture regions of Europe, the face of modern Rioja was cast during the 19th century.

o With the hope of escaping phylloxera, the deadly vine louse found in Bordeaux, many successful Bordeaux growers began moving south across the Pyrenees to La Rioja in the 1870's.

o Modern Rioja spends more time in small oak barrels than almost any other modern wine.

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SUB-AREASCLIMATIC

INFLUENCE

APPROXIMATE AREA OF

VINEYARDS

CHARACTERISTICS OF THE WINES

RIOJA ALTA

Atlantic24.457

hectares

-Medium alcohol content.-Full-bodied with high total acidity.- Suitable for aging in casks

RIOJA ALAVESA

Atlantic and Mediterranean

12.050hectares

-Red wines with average alcohol content and total acidity.-Ready for drinking (young wines obtained via carbonic maceration) and also for aging in casks.

RIOJA BAJA

Mediterranean20.907

hectares- Reds and rosés with higher alcohol content and extract.

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Areas where they are found

Percentage of total surface

Characteristics of the ground

Characteristics of the wines

Chalkyclay

Rioja Alavesa,Sonsierra and

Rioja Alta25%

Small, terraced plots

- Rich in glycerine extract- Good colour- Basis of red Riojas- Whites with character, light in colour

Ferrous clayFound in plots throughout the

region25%

Sloping. Reddish brown and hard with deep hard

rock

- Light reds with medium body- Rosés

Alluvial

Found in plots throughout the

wine region near rivers

 50%Large, flat plots with good depth and river stones

- Whites and reds with medium body

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There are five basic components or steps to making wine:

•Harvesting

•Crushing and Pressing

•Fermentation

•Clarification

•Aging and Bottling

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The Harvest

• Harvesting or picking is certainly the first step in the actual wine making process.

• In order to make fine wine, grapes must be harvested at the precise time, preferably when physiologically ripe.

• Harvesting can be done mechanically or by hand.

• Once the grapes arrive at the winery, reputable winemakers will sort the grape bunches, culling out rotten or under ripe fruit before crushing.

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Crushing and Pressing

• Crushing the whole clusters of fresh ripe grapes is traditionally the next step in the wine making process.

• Today, mechanical crushers perform the time-honored tradition of stomping the grapes into what is commonly referred to as must.

• Mechanical pressing has also improved the quality and longevity of wine, while reducing the winemaker's need for preservatives.

• Up until crushing and pressing the steps for making white wine and red wine are essentially the same.

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Fermentation

• Fermentation is indeed the magic at play in the making of wine.

• Many winemakers prefer to intervene at this stage by inoculating the natural must.

• Fermentation can require anywhere from ten days to a month or more.

• Sweet wine is produced when the fermentation process stops before all of the sugar has been converted into alcohol.

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Clarification

• Once fermentation is completed, the clarification process begins.

• Filtering and fining may also be done at this stage.

• Often, winemakers will add egg whites, clay, or other compounds to wine that will help precipitate dead yeast cells and other solids out of a wine.

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Aging and Bottling

• The final stage of the wine making process involves the aging and bottling of wine.

• After clarification, the winemaker has the choice of bottling a wine immediately, which is the case for Beaujolais Nouveau, or he or she can give a wine additional aging as in the case of Grand Cru Bordeaux and great Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon.

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QUEST IONS

What is the right temperature for the tasting of each type of wine?

How can I know the age of wine?

How must the uncorking be done?