Bodegas Tierra

Located in the Rioja Alavesa, the smallest of the Rioja subzones, the Spanish winery Bodegas Tierra is the protagonist of a terroir production with an international style, according to which local varieties are skilfully interpreted with the use of different types of wood. The winery is located precisely in the municipality of Labastida, on the banks of the Ebro river, an area where the Fernandez Gomez family has been handing down the art of wine-making for generations. For a long time, the ageing of the bodega wines has taken place inside fascinating underground caves dating back to the 15th and 16th centuries, in which temperature and humidity values are naturally constant throughout the year and where the more than 500 wooden barrels of different types rest in peace. In 2021, the current producer, Carlos Fernandez Gomez, was then elected Winemaker of the Year by Tim Atkin, the well-known British wine critic.

Bodegas Tierra has 27 hectares of vineyards, entirely devoted to the traditional varieties of Rioja, namely Tempranillo, Garnacha Tinta and Graciano, as far as red grapes are concerned, and Garnacha Blanca, Viura, Malvasia Riojana, Mazuelo Blanco and Moscatel among the white grapes. The vineyards, in which there are also century-old vine stocks, benefit from the area's special microclimate, characterised by the concomitant influence of the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. The agronomic management adopted is respectful of the health of the soil and plants, while in the cellar fermentation takes place in stainless steel tanks or in temperature-controlled wooden barrels. For ageing, French, American or even Australian oak barrels are used, small or medium-sized, new or multiple passages, all weighted according to the oenological objective. Some labels are then aged in characteristic marble containers or vinified in distinctive oval porcelain containers, often with long macerations on the skins even for white grapes.

From these multiple variables take shape the wines of Bodegas Tierra, modern expressions of Rioja Alavesa, all characterised by an exceptional balance between the softness brought by the woods and the freshness given by the terroir.