"94 points, Luis Gutiérrez, The Wine Advocate
'The subtle, balsamic, structured and elegant 2020 Viña Ardanza Reserva is a blend of Tempranillo from Rioja Alta and around 20% Garnacha from Rioja Baja. It fermented destemmed in stainless steel and aged in American oak barrels, 20% of them new, for a period of 36 months in the case of the Tempranillo and 30 months for the Garnacha, then the two wines are blended before bottling. It's a textbook example of the label, with the perfume and elegance of the Garnacha and the clout from Tempranillo. It has clean aromas and is still quite fresh, only starting its tertiary phase. It comes in at 14.5% alcohol and keeps a pH of 3.57 and 5.7 grams of acidity. It's balanced, seamless and well-built, and its tannins are mostly resolved. It should live long in bottle. 500,000 bottles produced. It was bottled in November 2024."
The Tempranillo grapes (80%) comes from the 30-year-old La Cuesta and Montecillo vineyards, located in Fuenmayor and Cenicero. The Garnacha (20%) comes from La Pedriza vineyard in Tudelilla (Rioja Baja), at an altitude of 550 m above sea level. This 67 hectare property offers unbeatable conditions for growing this variety.
