Bodegas Luis Canas Reserva DOCa Rioja
REGION: Rioja Alavesa, Spain
VARIETIES: Tempranillo 95%, Graciano 5%
VITICULTURE: Practising organic
YEAR: 2015
ALCOHOL: 14.5%
INFO: In 1970 Luis Cañas changed two hundred years of tradition and became the first winemaker in Rioja Alavesa to bottle his young wine rather than sell it as bulk.
This bold move, and his continued pioneering spirit, has cemented the winery's enviable reputation as one of the most progressive in the region. Sheltered below the watchful Sierra Cantabria, the vineyards are all old, small plots on chalky-clay soils with a dedicated team of vineyard workers carrying out organic practices and a purpose built, fully equipped accommodation block was built for the entire vineyard team in 2006.
The vines used for the Reserva have an average age of 40 years.
Maceration is in stainless steel tanks for a total of 21 days, obtaining better colour extraction as well as much more complex and tannic wines, suitable for prolonged ageing. The wines are then aged for 18 months in a combination of French and American oak
Deep cherry red, clean and bright. Good aromatic intensity with notes of ripe red fruits over a base of elegant balsamic. In the mouth is tasty, mellow, fresh and with fine nuances of sweet fruit. It has volume and the tannins are well integrated and polished. In the aftertaste, touches of very ripe fruit and nuances of liquorice appear making it last in the palate.