“The new Vino de Municipio category allows winemakers to continue to push that idea of variety and diversity within their regions and zones. It will also increase interest across the premium wines of Rioja. Rioja as wines of site, not just style, is now an official reality,” writes Turner.
Old vines growing in the municipality of Elvillar
Vino de Municipio – the village wine of Rioja
A scan slightly further down the facts and figures of Rioja will tell you that there are 144 municipalities across Rioja, with 118 in La Rioja, 18 in Álava, and 8 in Navarra. With the municipalities dotted across the three large zones of Rioja, it’s obvious that some of those municipalities will have differing grape growing conditions, allowing for some very different wines to be produced across the “100kms of Diveristy” the Consejo is (rightly) very keen to promote. The new categories introduced in 2017, therefore, included the ability to produce Vino De Municipio.
In a similar situation to what was happening with the geographical zones, the municipality the wine came from was allowed to be referenced to since 1999, but the 2017 regulations are designed to update the rules on what we mean by a ‘municipality’ or ‘village wine’ and allow producers to use the name of the municipality front and centre on the label.
The rules state that the producers need to have been working with these sites for over 10 years and all wines must be grown, produced, aged, and bottled within the labelled municipality, although 15% of the fruit can come from a neighbouring municipality. To further increase the quality of this new category, the control board of Rioja needs to sign off that the wines produced hit the required quality standard each year.
Bodegas Bhilar’s David Sampedro Gil: Vino de Muncipio works well
Eagerly embraced by many
This new category has been eagerly embraced, especially those in the Basque Àlava region whose winemakers have been so vocal about terroir-specific wines in the lead-up to 2017. Not only is there a palpable sense of pride in their particular region of Alavesa from many producers round here, the region also contains some of the most famed municipalities in the world of Rioja, including Laguardia, Elvillar, Elciego and Oyón.
“Vino de Muncipio works well for me,” states David Sampedro Gil, owner and winemaker at the biodynamic Bodegas Bhilar, in the Elvillar municipality. “The wines I want to make didn’t always fit the classic idea of what Rioja is or was, but now? As long as 85% of the wine is from here? I have 17 hectares and can produce 7 different wines with the range of soils in just this municipality.”
Gil’s increasingly iconic wines are achieving almost cult status for those lucky enough to come across them. His range of Village and Village Estate wines (including the outstanding Thousand Milks white blend) all come from vineyards just a short trip from his front gates.
This view is echoed by Clara Canals, head winemaker at the iconic Bodegas Ysios in the famous Laguardia municipality, also in Rioja Alavesa.
“Rioja is all about diversity and we’re increasingly looking to promote that,” explains Canals. “We own 6 hectares, and control a further 40 hectares more, divided into 50 plots. Everything is kept separately and aged separately, and then we might make a blending decision. But since 2015 all our wines were labelled Cosecha (generic) to give us more options with barrel sizes and timings as we aim to show off the individual terroir at our disposal. Getting to promote wines of Laguardia, or even single vineyards, allows us to continue our mission to produce wines of site, not just wines of style.”
Bodegas Bideona’s Tao Platón: frustrated about the rules
A point of particular frustration
The initial rules aren’t without their sticking points, and one in particular comes to the front of many conversations with winemakers. The fact that the wines must be grown, produced, aged, and bottled in the named municipality has been keenly criticised by those winemakers looking to source fruit from around Rioja to show off the “100kms of Diveristy” within their own portfolio.
Tao Platón, technical director at Bodegas Bideona, lauds the ability to more thoroughly explore the terroir across the local regions, but faces a frustrating logistical constraint. “We have plots in 7 different villages across Rioja Alavesa,” reveals Platón. “As a winemaker I’m proud that in my portfolio we get to show off different terroir styles. The fruit from our plots in Villabuena, for example, has naturally thicker skins and a different profile from that of Laguardia, although both are fabulous wines. It’s great to show that to those enjoying our wines. But I’m not allowed to label a Vino de Laguardia because my winery isn’t in Laguardia. It’s annoying to say the least.”
Bodegas Ortega Ezquerro’s David Bastida
How consumer-friendly is this new category?
Personally speaking, my biggest issue is with the number of different municipalities… 144. That’s a lot! A recent conversation I had with someone (who I promised would remain nameless) who can lay claim to being one of the leading Rioja commentators in the world freely admitted that they wouldn’t back themselves to know them all. I’ll start you off; Laguardia, Elvillar, San Vicente, Elciego…I’d better mention Tudelilla or David Bastida (from Bodegas Ortega Ezquerro) will kill me! But feel free to continue after that. I’d imagine you’d get a few more, but the point is that it’s not easy.
As soon as you mention “village wines” to anyone in the wine trade, their minds usually flick very quickly to Burgundy where there are just 44 village AOCs. I’m not going to even try and understand the politics involved in picking out just a handful to begin with, but confusion may well reign supreme with many of the lesser-known municipalities, and in the worst case may make the use of Vino de Municipio fairly meaningless at times.
A more “Côtes du Rhône / Côtes du Rhône Villages” style set-up could have been an interesting idea to begin with, with individual municipalities having to prove their quality and uniqueness over a series of vintages before gaining the ability to be a named municipality. There is also the potential that this is also just me being lazy and not wanting to study the map!
My overall feeling is that the new classification category is a huge positive and will arguably lead to some of the most interesting discussions about Rioja going forward. It allows winemakers to continue to push that idea of variety and diversity within their regions and zones. It will also increase interest across the premium wines of Rioja. Rioja as wines of site, not just style, is now an official reality.
Get to know Rioja better
On Wednesday 21st June 2023, Rioja Wine UK will host an unique event at a London 5-star hotel where members of the trade can spend a day immersed in the rich culture and heritage of Rioja – there will be a chance to taste some of the region’s finest wines as well as a busy schedule of educational masterclasses hosted by some of the most renowned Rioja wine experts. For more information click here.
For more information about the Rioja DOCa, please contact the team at Phipps PR (rhian.rosser@thisisphipps.com)
Mike Turner is a freelance writer, presenter, educator and regular contributor for The Buyer. He also runs a wine events and ecommerce business, Feel Good Grapes, that explores and discusses the idea of sustainability in the wine trade.
