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Spain · 48 vintages on record

Rioja

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23Warm years
8Cool years
8Frost
0Smoke
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ColdCoolAverageWarmHot Very dryDryNormalWetVery wet 19221970199420072018 1947 · Warm A warm, dry season built deeply colored wines that still drink beautifully today. 1964 · Warm Warm, generous, and nearly perfect, this is Rioja's benchmark vintage of the century. 1968 · Cool A cool, drought year that trimmed yields but concentrated flavor and structure. 1975 · Cool A cool, wet, disease-pressured year that rewarded patient, structured winemaking. 1981 · Warm (thin record) A selective, excellent year that built intense, deeply colored, age-worthy wines. 1982 · Warm A spring and summer drought concentrated fruit into one of Rioja's legendary years. 1987 · Warm Early rain threatened the harvest, but a hot late September saved it. 1989 · Warm A frosty start and summer hail could not stop an early, warm harvest. 1991 · Cool A cold, wet, frost-hit year that produced lean, high-acid, age-worthy wines. 1994 · Hot A hot, dry, frost-thinned harvest producing small yields and brilliant concentration. 1995 · Warm A warm, well-watered year that delivered abundant, ripe, Excelente-rated wines. 1996 · Average A promising, balanced season undone by heavy rain right before harvest. 1998 · Warm A hot, dry summer and small crop built concentrated, age-worthy wines. 2001 · Hot A long, hot, dry season built one of Rioja's greatest Excelente vintages. 2004 · Average A slow, even ripening season with cool nights built precise, age-worthy wines. 2005 · Cool Cooler and drier than 2004, this vintage ages slowly into a classic. 2006 · Warm A wet start, August heat, and scattered hail made a fresh, supple year. 2007 · Cool A cool, rainy, mildew-hit year that still found elegant, aromatic wines. 2008 · Cool A wet, mildew-prone spring was rescued by a long, warm Indian summer. 2009 · Hot A hot, dry summer and early harvest built a generous, Very Good year. 2010 · Warm Warm conditions and a deliberate yield cut built an Excellent, elegant year. 2011 · Hot Near-total summer drought concentrated fruit into a second straight Excelente year. 2012 · Hot Spain's worst drought since 1945 produced a tiny but healthy, ripe crop. 2014 · Cool A cool, mildew-prone summer was rescued by a warm, dry September finish. 2015 · Hot The hottest, driest year yet produced Rioja's earliest-ever, concentrated harvest. 2016 · Warm A dry summer and late heat spike still built a large, balanced crop. 2017 · Hot April frost and summer drought forced Rioja's earliest-ever, concentrated harvest. 2018 · Cool A cooler, wetter season built fresher wines with lower alcohol than 2017. 2019 · Warm A warm, dry, low-yield year earned Rioja's first Excelente since 2011. 2020 · Warm A warm, wet spring triggered historic mildew, but skilled growers pulled through. 2021 · Average Frost and hail tested growers, but warm days and cool nights won out. 2022 · Hot Spain's hottest July on record still produced surprisingly fresh, healthy wines. 2023 · Hot Record August heat and split-timing September rain shaped a Very Good year. 2025 · Warm Mildew cut the crop, then a calm autumn earned an Excellent rating. 1947 · Dry A warm, dry season built deeply colored wines that still drink beautifully today. 1964 · Normal Warm, generous, and nearly perfect, this is Rioja's benchmark vintage of the century. 1968 · Very dry A cool, drought year that trimmed yields but concentrated flavor and structure. 1975 · Wet A cool, wet, disease-pressured year that rewarded patient, structured winemaking. 1982 · Very dry A spring and summer drought concentrated fruit into one of Rioja's legendary years. 1983 · Wet (thin record) A patchy, rain-diluted year that fell short of Rioja's best 1980s vintages. 1991 · Wet A cold, wet, frost-hit year that produced lean, high-acid, age-worthy wines. 1994 · Very dry A hot, dry, frost-thinned harvest producing small yields and brilliant concentration. 1995 · Normal A warm, well-watered year that delivered abundant, ripe, Excelente-rated wines. 1996 · Wet A promising, balanced season undone by heavy rain right before harvest. 1997 · Dry A dry summer drove record yields but diluted quality in lower vineyards. 1998 · Dry A hot, dry summer and small crop built concentrated, age-worthy wines. 2001 · Very dry A long, hot, dry season built one of Rioja's greatest Excelente vintages. 2005 · Dry Cooler and drier than 2004, this vintage ages slowly into a classic. 2006 · Dry A wet start, August heat, and scattered hail made a fresh, supple year. 2007 · Wet A cool, rainy, mildew-hit year that still found elegant, aromatic wines. 2008 · Wet A wet, mildew-prone spring was rescued by a long, warm Indian summer. 2009 · Very dry A hot, dry summer and early harvest built a generous, Very Good year. 2011 · Very dry Near-total summer drought concentrated fruit into a second straight Excelente year. 2012 · Very dry Spain's worst drought since 1945 produced a tiny but healthy, ripe crop. 2014 · Wet A cool, mildew-prone summer was rescued by a warm, dry September finish. 2015 · Very dry The hottest, driest year yet produced Rioja's earliest-ever, concentrated harvest. 2016 · Dry A dry summer and late heat spike still built a large, balanced crop. 2017 · Very dry April frost and summer drought forced Rioja's earliest-ever, concentrated harvest. 2018 · Wet A cooler, wetter season built fresher wines with lower alcohol than 2017. 2019 · Dry A warm, dry, low-yield year earned Rioja's first Excelente since 2011. 2020 · Wet A warm, wet spring triggered historic mildew, but skilled growers pulled through. 2021 · Dry Frost and hail tested growers, but warm days and cool nights won out. 2022 · Very dry Spain's hottest July on record still produced surprisingly fresh, healthy wines. 2025 · Wet Mildew cut the crop, then a calm autumn earned an Excellent rating.

Dashed: each vintage. Solid: five-year running average of season temperature.

Temperature here is relative to Rioja's own normal, not an absolute scale across regions. Every value comes from that year's own vintage report; a missing value means the report did not describe that part of the season, not that nothing happened.