Enologist: Jaime de Simón

D.O.C. Rioja

Grapes: Graciano 100%

Ageing: The wine has aged for 14 months in fine-grained Allier Oak Casks, and it was bottled in March 2007.  It needs to mature in the bottle so as to be at its best when consumed.

Tasting Notes:
Cherry with a medium-high layer, glinting blue at the edge. High intensity, with nuances of herb teas, black tea, cocoa. When the glass is twirled there appear nuances of red berries and gooseberries, enveloped in aromas of toffee and hints of aromatic herbs and sage... A highly spirited wine still. Well put-together, with the edge taken off the tannins, making it juicy in its passage over the palate. There reappear flavors of red fruits, cocoa... The after nose is long and fresh, with hints of herb teas and almond.  Importers Notes

Additional Information

The Bodega dates back to the second half of the 19th century, when Francisco Javier Solano y Eulate, the 'Marquis de la Solana' and owner of a large area of vineyards in Villabuena, decided, on the advice of the famous oenologist from Bordeaux, Msr. Pineau, to begin making and aging his wines according to methods imported from Médoc and to start selling them in bottles, after aging, under the label 'Marqués de la Solana'.

Following the enlargement of the bodega’s underground ‘calados’ or caves, the importation of the first wine-making machinery and the introduction of oak casks from Bordeaux, the wines started to win major awards such as the silver medal at the Logroño Exhibition in 1898 and the gold medal at the Universal Exhibition in Barcelona in 1929.

On the death of the Marquis, his property was inherited by his daughters, Mª Teresa and María Solano (grandmother of the current owners), who changed the name of the bodega to Bodegas de Crianza S.M.S. (the abbreviation of the family surnames).

Nowadays, the bodega, which changed its name once again in 1996 to Viñedos y Bodegas de la Marquesa, continues to be a family firm and is owned by Juan Pablo de Simón and his brothers, while the next generation, Pablo and Jaime de Simón (Juan Pablo’s sons) are preparing to take over the running of the company in the future.