Remírez de Ganuza

Fernando Remírez de Ganuza founded the eponymous winery in Samaniego in 1989 with an unusual professional background. He had spent years as a broker, sourcing fruit and wine for other Rioja estates, and that experience gave him an unusually detailed knowledge of which vineyards in the appellation produced the best fruit. When he established his own project, he already knew exactly where he wanted to source from, and the estate's vineyard portfolio was built around the parcels he had identified during his broker years rather than assembled opportunistically over time. The estate has since become one of the leading exponents of contemporary Rioja, with a clear commitment to vineyard-driven terroir expression and a technically rigorous cellar approach that has produced two patented innovations.

• Founded 1989 in Samaniego, Álava (Rioja Alavesa) by Fernando Remírez de Ganuza
• Fernando came to winemaking from a previous career as a wine broker for other Rioja estates
• Vineyard portfolio built around parcels identified during his broker years
• One of the leading exponents of contemporary Rioja with strong vineyard-driven and technically rigorous identity

The estate works approximately 80 hectares of vineyards consisting of 70 estates formed from more than 200 plots across nine Rioja Alavesa municipalities on the foothills of the Sierra Cantabria. The municipalities include Labastida, San Vicente de la Sonsierra, Ábalos, Samaniego, Leza, Elciego, Navaridas, Laguardia, and Elvillar, an unusually broad cross-section of Rioja Alavesa terroir for a single estate. The Sierra Cantabria's foothills give the parcels significant elevation variation and varied soil composition, with the estate's blending across this range allowing the top wines to draw on the most precise expressions from each vintage. The fragmented portfolio is a deliberate choice; rather than concentrating in a few large parcels, the estate works the most consistent fruit-producing plots across the broader sub-region.

• ~80 hectares across 70 estates and 200+ plots in nine Rioja Alavesa municipalities
• Municipalities span Labastida, San Vicente de la Sonsierra, Ábalos, Samaniego, Leza, Elciego, Navaridas, Laguardia, Elvillar
• Foothills of the Sierra Cantabria give significant elevation variation and varied soil composition
• Fragmented portfolio is a deliberate choice for vintage-by-vintage blending precision rather than parcel concentration

Remírez de Ganuza has built its modern reputation around two patented cellar innovations. The first is bunch separation: Tempranillo clusters are physically split into shoulders (the upper portion of the bunch, where grapes reach perfect phenolic ripeness) and tips (the lower portion, which ripens slightly less). The shoulders go into the Reserva and Gran Reserva bottlings; the tips go into Erre Punto, the estate's carbonic maceration cuvée. The second innovation is the water-bag press, used for the flagship Trasnocho red. After fermentation, a specialized bag is lowered into the tank and filled first with air and then with water; the bag's gravity-driven pressure gives the grapes a press at roughly half the force of a conventional pneumatic press, producing a softer, more aromatically delicate wine. Both innovations are patented and remain unique to the estate.

• Patented bunch separation: shoulders (top of cluster) for Reserva/Gran Reserva, tips (bottom) for Erre Punto carbonic maceration cuvée
• Patented water-bag press: bag filled with air then water gives gravity-driven pressure at ~half a normal press
• Trasnocho red is made using the patented water-bag press; the estate's most ambitious wine
• Both innovations remain unique to Remírez de Ganuza

Remírez de Ganuza occupies a particular position in contemporary Rioja: a relatively young estate at 36 years that has built a top-tier reputation through technical innovation alongside traditional regional identity. The bunch separation system has influenced thinking about Tempranillo ripeness across the region, even where the estate's specific patents are not in use, and the water-bag press is a clear demonstration that careful engineering can shape stylistic outcomes in ways that more traditional cellars cannot match. For drinkers tracking Rioja beyond the historic López de Heredia, La Rioja Alta, and Marqués de Murrieta names, Remírez de Ganuza is one of the contemporary references that defines what modern Rioja can be.

• Contemporary Rioja reference, founded 1989 with vineyard portfolio built from broker-era knowledge
• Patented bunch separation has influenced thinking about Tempranillo ripeness across the broader Rioja market
• Water-bag press is a clear demonstration that engineering can shape stylistic outcomes
• Sits in modern Rioja conversation alongside Roda, Artadi, and the new generation of vineyard-driven estates