Artuke - Rioja, Spain (2023)

TASTING NOTES

A young, vivacious red wine from Rioja produced by Bodegas Artuke (brothers Arturo and Kike). Bright, juicy summer berry fruit, smooth body with some chalky tannins. 

A blend of Tempranillo (95%) and Viura (5%) from a mix of vines planted between 1902 and 2005.

Artuke is produced by the carbonic maceration method - most associated with Beaujolais and yet just as traditional, but rarely seen outside of Rioja. The style, cosecheros, is literally what the locals in the Basque zone of Rioja (Alavesa) are drinking while waiting for their more structured Riojas to age. 

Artuke is a small winery located in Baños de Ebro, a village in Rioja Alavesa on the banks of the river. In 1991, Roberto de Miguel decided to move away from bulk wine production onto bottled wine. Now his children Arturo and Kike, whose names are the basis of the winery they now lead, are shaping this project, firmly rooted in its surroundings and landscape.

Artuke is part of a group of young producers who are committed to making singular wines which reflect their origins and terroir. Conscious of their heritage —they carried out a detailed study of the soils in their plots, located in Baños de Ebro, Ábalos, San Vicente de la Sonsierra and later in Samaniego— they fight to preserve it rather than transform it. That is one of the reasons behind their efforts to work the 25 hectares they own in the old way —no trellis on site; their plants are all bush vines, even the new ones.