Valenciso Rioja Cemento 2018

Cemento is Valenciso's Rioja fermented and matured entirely in concrete, with no time in barrel at all.

Concrete was once standard across Rioja, then all but disappeared in the 1980s as stainless steel and oak took over; a new generation of specialist makers has brought it back, and Valenciso has been among its more committed users. All of the estate's wines pass through concrete at some stage, and this bottling takes the idea to its conclusion, with fermentation and the full ageing carried out in cement vats. The gentler extraction that concrete allows suits the fruit here: one hundred per cent Tempranillo from a group of old-vine sites in the limestone-rich hillsides around Haro and Ollauri, in western Rioja Alta. The wine spent thirty months in vat before bottling, long enough to settle and knit together without picking up any wood character, which leaves the bright berry fruit, the fine tannin and the chalky lift of the sites entirely exposed.

Ready now and good for another eight years or so. Try it with grilled lamb cutlets, roast vegetables or a plate of chorizo and Manchego; serve at 16-18°C.

*Every effort is made to ensure the current vintage is accurate; however, variations can occur. If you are after a specific vintage, please contact us prior to ordering.