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More is more for Viña Eguía

09 December 2025 By Michael Huband

Many producers limit themselves to a signature wine or two, but Viña Eguía has embraced the challenge of expressing all of Rioja’s facets in its dynamic range.

Viña Eguía takes its name from the Basque for truth. It is a bold project for a winery, trying to express the truth of a region. In this case, Viña Eguía’s range seeks to communicate the truth of Rioja.

Or rather, the many truths. For Rioja is not a single thing. A more bright, youthful crianza stands apart from a mature, savoury gran reserva, yet both are true expressions of Rioja. Likewise, vines basking in the warmth of the Rioja Oriental make very different wines to those on north-facing, high-altitude sites in the Rioja Alta.

Even the question of grape variety is more complex than it might first appear. Although Tempranillo makes up close to 90% of Rioja’s plantings, a host of other varieties, such as Graciano and Mazuelo also feature.

Luckily, Viña Eguía does not have to choose which truth to express. It controls around 750 hectares of vineyards spread across Rioja’s three sub-regions – 400 of which it owns outright. It has therefore created a diverse portfolio of wines that celebrates long-established styles, innovative winemaking, distinctive varieties and specific terroirs.

Staying true to the classics

When most people think of Rioja, they think of Tempranillo-led red wines which show the influence of oak ageing. It is a style much-loved around the world, and so Viña Eguía could not ignore it in the winery’s range.

Three bottles – the Viña Eguía Criana, Viña Eguía Reserva and Viña Eguía Gran Reserva – demonstrate that style of Rioja winemaking in the producer’s commodities range.

The three expressions highlight much of what has made Rioja world famous. The well-established Tempranillo vines – at least 20 years old – offer balanced, ripe fruit. This is then matured in American oak barrels, the quintessential regime in Rioja.

In particular, the Gran Reserva celebrates the viticultural heritage of Rioja. Its grapes are sourced from vines with an average age of 40 years, grown with the traditional gobelet method. Such resilient old vines, adapted perfectly to the dry summers of inland Spain, yield highly concentrated grapes, perfect for slow maturation in oak barrels.

*The winery can store vast reserves of wine, developing its character in barrels.*

Championing local grapes

There is, however, a world to explore beyond Tempranillo, and Viña Eguía embraces this fully. Its range features three bivarietal wines that pair up complementary grapes, showing the breadth of production in Rioja.

The red, not unsurprisingly, features Tempranillo Tinto, the region’s emblematic black grape variety. It is known for its complex flavours of black and red fruits, as well as its propensity for ageing. It is joined by a very different companion: the flavours of Mazuelo (also known as Carignan) are less intense, but its precise acidity and firm tannins offer structure in a blend.

A bivarietal white, meanwhile, combines the subtle complexities and ageworthiness of Viura with the lively citrus and pineapple profile of Tempranillo Blanco.

Then there is the rosé. As drinkers around the world continue to explore pink wines, Viña Eguía demonstrates what Rioja can bring to the table. Pale and elegant, but with a characteristic boldness of fresh fruit aromas, it uses a 50:50 blend of Tempranillo Tinto and Garnacha to maximise its flavour.

Diverse origins and winemaking

The winery’s latest project – one that is not even fully released yet – is engaging even more with the precision possible in both vineyard selection and winemaking choices. Those wines are named Winemaker Editions.

They have been developed with wine lovers in mind. In terms of destinations, they will find homes in small hospitality businesses in Spain, or specialist retailers or wine clubs both at home and abroad.

Their different characters are wide-ranging, but they include niche varieties from specific villages, old vine expressions, high-altitude vineyards, concrete-aged Rioja and organically produced wines.

Excitingly, it is a range constantly in flux. The magic of one year may not repeat, so there is no standardised range for every vintage. Instead, each year it will reflect Viña Eguía’s most interesting developments in the vineyard or the winery.

This could mean a highly-esteemed plot, whose fruit brings a unique character to the wine. It could mean focusing on one of Rioja’s lesser-known grapes and what it might express in isolation. Or else it might mean a cuvée vinified in a unique manner.

*Rioja has a wealth of distinctive plots for winemaking.*

Oftentimes, those identities intersect. Maturana Tinta de Laguardia, sources the deep-coloured variety from the village of Laguardia, where the vines are always planted at high altitudes. Viña Eguía Tempranillo de Elciego is, again, sourced from a specific area, but is also notable for its organic viticulture and vinification.

Moreover, the project is constantly expanding its ambition. At times that means work on an existing wine, such as the Mazuelo de Viñas Viejas de Alfaro, which will be organic from the 2026 vintage. It also means new discoveries: Viña Eguía Garnachas de Alfaro, a high-altitude organic Garnacha, launches in 2027.

Then there are wines that look even further afield. As part of the range, Viña Eguía is releasing bottles from DO Rías Baixas and DO Ribera, further showcasing its authority in Spanish wine.

Regardless of the variety, location or style, Viña Eguía seems to be able to find a place in its portfolio. The ever-expanding range makes a persuasive argument for sourcing widely, as well as the almost limitless possibilities in Rioja – and beyond.