Details about the D.O.Ca. Rioja

The geography of Rioja

The Denominación de Origen Calificada Rioja covers an area which includes part of three Autonomous Communities (regions) in Northern Spain: La Rioja, the Basque Country and Navarre. It is divided into three production areas: Rioja Alta, Rioja Baja and Rioja Alavesa.

Rioja in figures

Rioja has a vineyard surface area in excess of 60.000 hectares, extending on both sides of the River Ebro along a 100 km stretch. Its average annual production is 400 million kilos of grapes, which are turned into 300 million litres of wine.

Rioja wines

Rioja is best known for the excellence of its red wines, made primarily from Tempranillo grapes. However, Riojan production also includes a wide range of other wines, including: traditionally-aged white wines of exquisite complexity; innovative and astonishingly good barrel-fermented whites; fresh and fruity ‘claretes’ (very pale rosés with an ‘onion skin’ colour) and an almost endless range of fine varietal wines (reds, whites and rosés). BORRAR You can find specific information about the multitude of wines that are produced in Rioja in the web sites whose links appear on the links page.