Founded in 1972, Bodegas LAN is situated in the heart of Rioja Alta. Though a relatively young producer, the bodega has gained a well-deserved reputation for excellent quality wines. This quality is derived from the grapes they work with, grown in their spectacular Viña Lanciano vineyard and other prime vineyard sites in Rioja Alta and Alavesa. They also owe their success to winemaker María Barúa’s incredible attention to detail in the winery.
Viña Lanciano is one of the largest and most striking single-vineyard sites in Rioja Alta, encircled by a curve of the Ebro River. The vineyard’s poor, ‘canto rodado’ stony soils and old vines, aged up to 60 years old, create low yields of very concentrated fruit. The site is divided into 24 plots of different soils and aspects, each matched to the grape varieties Tempranillo, Graciano, Garnacha and Mazuelo. The top site, within the Viña Lanciano vineyard, is ‘Pago el Rincón’, which boasts the highest elevation and oldest vines. The ‘A Mano’ and ‘Culmen’ Riojas are sourced from the ‘Pago el Rincón’. The vineyard is hand-harvested and sustainably farmed without the use of herbicides.
María Barúa has been the head winemaker and technical director since 2002. She brings scientific expertise to the Bodega through her oenology degree and academic background in chemistry, alongside excellent local knowledge, having been born and raised in Rioja. María is an oak ageing expert, and a lot of work goes into matching each wine with the perfect barrel, just as individual grape varieties are matched to specific plots within the bodega’s vineyards. Bodegas LAN work with a wide range of French, American, Pyrenean and Hungarian oak barrels from numerous coopers and were the first Rioja bodega to pioneer a hybrid barrel with American oak staves and French oak heads.
These hybrid barrels are used to age the Rioja Crianza and Rioja Reserva, both of which blend Tempranillo with a touch of Mazuelo, and the Crianza has a dash of Garnacha.
