As a winery with a huge vision for new wave Spanish wines, Marqués de la Concordia is not afraid to push the boundaries in the nation’s most traditional wine region.
To set your sights on developing the best wine in any single region in the world is audacious enough, but to do so in Rioja – famed for a variable climate that leads to fluctuating vintage quality and grape prices – is daring in the extreme. And “Rioja in the extreme” is the phrase we have chosen at Marqués de la Concordia to describe our efforts in Spain’s best known wine region to produce the best wine possible.
Marqués de la Concordia, which has received 136 awards since 2004, produces a range of premium ‘new wave’ Spanish wines from the finest Spanish regions that continually challenge tradition through innovation in both the vineyard and winery. No more is this evident than in Rioja, where the brand produces its signature range that deliver a New World style of Rioja that is bold and fruit driven.
Marqués de la Concordia is one of the most exciting developments in Rioja and brings together the best of both the New and the Old World – New World style and Old World terroir. The result is a flagship range of premium ‘new wave’ Spanish wines from Rioja and emerging Spanish regions, which challenge convention with experimentation and innovation.
Hacienda de Susar
Hacienda de Susar was the first and only vineyard in La Rioja planted with both local Tempranillo grapes and the international varieties of Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Merlot. The experimental status, granted by the Rioja authorities and the outstanding results achieved are seriously challenging the boundaries of traditional viticulture in Rioja.
In 1995, Hacienda de Susar was granted experimental status to make the first wines ever in Rioja from international grape varieties as well as Rioja’s fabled red grape, Tempranillo. 15 hectares were planted in the best plots on the Hacienda de Susar estate. These were trained to one of the most advanced and innovative viticultural systems in the world, the Smart-Dyson trellis system, following the principal that increased exposure of the vines to sunlight results in better quality fruit. The trellising combined with drip irrigation sets this vineyard apart from its neighbours in Rioja Baja. This New World approach in a vineyard in Rioja may well be regarded as extreme, but the viticultural practices carried out here are as a direct result of consultation with leading experts such as winemaking guru Michel Roland.
After more than seven years of hard work and perseverance the first vintage, 1999, was released to an eagerly awaiting public. The wine quickly established itself as a new Riojan icon with wine enthusiasts and critics alike and two years later in 2004 Robert Parker, the most important wine critic in the world today, awarded 92 points to the Hacienda de Susar 2001. The Marqués de la Concordia wines had arrived!
Winemaking
The philosophy for Marqués de la Concordia single estate wines has been to give absolute freedom of creativity to the winemakers to make wines representative of the terroir they come from. The A-grade grapes grow on sandy limestone soil and are assessed daily to ensure their high quality. When they are at optimum ripeness, the grapes are hand harvested and there is a meticulous selection of individual berries prior to crushing. The wine is aged in new French oak barrels for 18 months and is regularly assessed before being bottled without filtration.
The combination of the different grape varieties results in a unique blend of Rioja and a wine which seems to have the best of both worlds. Ripe, New World fruit flavours combined with a savoury note and high acidity, which is more typical of the wines of the region.
Haciendas de España
Marques de la Concordia is also part of the Haciendas de España world. Fine wine estates, special terroirs and exceptional wines; these are the focal points of Haciendas de España, the most innovative wine concept ever to come out of Spain.
It has long been recognised that Spain has the diversity and the wherewithal to become one of the world’s greatest premium wine producing countries offering everything from modern style fruit-driven wines to classic icon wines to savour. With the growing collection of fine wine estates in the Haciendas de España portfolio, this is now a reality.
Whether in Rioja, the Duero, Penedés or Andalucia, Haciendas de España is making its mark with unique wines from unique estates. These estates perfectly reflect the diverse nature of the terroirs and regional cultures of Spain, with each site chosen for particular significant attributes.
Walking through the vineyards, the essence of what makes a wine so intriguing can be felt. Tempranillo grapes ripening alongside classics like Syrah, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon; vineyards that surround state-of-the-art wineries sympathetically designed with local architecture in mind and embracing local culture and tradition, concealing the cool ageing cellars within.
And there is more: a range of our own natural foods and olive oils - cheeses include the award winning Queso Curado de Oveja, whilst the meat range includes chorizo, jamon iberico and culminates in Spanish favourite Cana de Lomo Iberico de Bellota; fine dining from Sergi Arola, one of Spain’s most celebrated two-star Michelin chefs; and five star hotels in some of the loveliest locations in Spain, renovated and refurbished from ancient buildings, all playing a supporting role to the great wines of Haciendas de España.
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