100-Year-Old Wine Producer Makes Rioja Wine From Old Vines

The tiny, precious hands of the little girl were shaking as she held on to the trunk of a baby Tempranillo grape vine while her grandmother pushed dirt into the hole where the young vine was being held so they could plant this vine together, as for many generations, it has been passed on from grandmother to granddaughter. The little girl was always in awe of her grandmother’s beautiful hands, which were strong yet gentle, depending on whether she was laboring in the vineyards or stroking her granddaughter’s hair. She hoped that one day she could have such hands, the hands of a superhero, as there was no one else as amazing as her grandma.

In 1882, the wine region of Rioja, Spain, enjoyed a boom in wine sales as French producers were buying the wines of Rioja to help supplement their own demand, as many of their vineyards had been destroyed by the pest, phylloxera. So, the multi-generational grape growers in Rioja planted more vines of their cherished native Tempranillo red grape variety. It was a very exciting time; the grandmother told her precious little grandchild that the incredible vineyards of their people were finally receiving the glory they deserved and that her granddaughter would have a much better life that would be unimaginable, even to her grandmother.

By 1893, phylloxera had made its way down to Rioja a few years earlier and this pest started to feed on the roots of locals’ beloved Tempranillo grape vines, where it would either kill or stunt the growth of some of the vines. It seemed that the hope for the region had plummeted overnight and the grandmother passed away from the intense stress, leaving her 18-year-old granddaughter alone as the sole guardian trying to protect their small plots of vines as her parents wanted to rip out the vines so they could plant grain instead. With tears running down her face, she begged her mother not to pull out the one vine she had planted with her grandmother but in the end, it was torn out of the ground, destroying the most precious memory she had of her childhood with her hero. A local young man who had been courting this 18-year-old lady for years saw his opportunity to comfort her. He asked her to marry him and to move to Madrid for better opportunities. Overwhelmed with grief and the great disappointment of her parents killing something so precious, she went to Madrid with this young man. She married him, feeling at that moment that she would never return home again. 

During this time, a man named Ramón Bilbao from a small town called Etxebarri in northern Spain, around 60 miles north of Haro—the main town of Rioja—moved to Haro to start his own business. He open a grain warehouse as well as planted vines in 1914, which was a gamble considering that something else, like the devastation of phylloxera, could happen again in the vineyards. 

Ramón Bilbao

Sign of Ramón Bilbao
Photo Credit: Ramón Bilbao

Unfortunately, in 1929, five years after the winery, Bodega Ramón Bilbao, opened,  Ramón passed away, leaving his son Enrique to fulfill his dream, which he did with Bodega Ramón Bilbao becoming a very successful wine producer in Rioja, celebrating their 100th anniversary this year. Not only do they own their own vineyards but they have had a long-term partnership with multi-generational grape growers in the area to expand their sourcing of grapes from a wide range of small plots that include Tempranillo grape vines that are 80 to over 90 years old. No other wine showcases that beautiful partnership as does their wine, Mirto. 

Harvesting grape bunches by hand
Photo Credit: Ramón Bilbao

The first vintage of Mirto was in 1999, when the technical and general director, Rodolfo Bastida, joined Bodega Ramón Bilbao. He had been walking through the vineyards with a local grower in the sub-region of Rioja Alta, discussing the 1999 vintage, and the grower said to him, “Año de mirto año de vino,” which translates into English, “year of myrtle, year of wine.” Then he pointed to all the myrtle plants growing on the edge of the plot. It is a local expression that means thriving myrtle plants are an excellent sign for the vines and when the myrtle is great, the wine will be great. So Rodolfo decided to make a 100% Tempranillo wine sourced from multiple old vine plots and call it Mirto and the 1999 Mirto was a lovely wine out of the gates and after many years of cellaring, still impresses.

Rodolfo Bastida
Photo Credit: Ramón Bilbao

Mirto is just one of the projects that Rodolfo is spearheading as Ramón Bilbao founded a winery in 2019 called Lalomba (translating to hill), which is devoted to the exploration of a single vineyard estate called Lalinde which is located on a hill in the most eastern sub-region named Rioja Oriental. A section of the vineyard makes an ultra-premium rosé wine that is a field blend of the local red Garnacha grape and the white Viura grape made from vines that are almost half a century old. It makes a concentrated rosé wine with lots of freshness and minerality that improves with age.

Rodolfo is a native of Rioja and a multi-generational winemaker as his father and grandfather were also winemakers. He feels that he has come full circle with spending most of his time in the vineyards as he knows that thinking back to the 1800s, locals who made wine in Rioja lived in the vineyards and as more professional wineries started to become established, there was a change as his grandfather spent all his time in a lab with his white lab coat as it was crucial for Rioja to develop modern practices in the winery, analyzing samples to make sure they produced commercially viable wine. Then, his father spent half the time in the lab and half in the vineyards; as Rioja had established itself as a fine wine region globally with sound practices in the winery, there was a resurgence of appreciating the vineyards again. And now, Rodolfo spends almost all of his time among Rioja’s most precious jewels, those old vines planted so long ago that have been protected by generation after generation.

Nothing More Important 

It took many years before that young woman, who left Rioja in the late 1800s, spoke to her parents again and by the time she was in her mid-40s in 1938, she had her own daughter and granddaughter. The Spanish Civil War had been raging for a few years, with Madrid massively bombed by rebel planes; her husband was dead, her daughter’s husband was dead and it was only the three of them now. She knew a friend who lived in Madrid who was going back home to Rioja and she asked her to bring a letter to her mother telling her that she was bringing her daughter and granddaughter to visit them.

Then, there she was, in front of her parent’s house on their family’s piece of land in Rioja, where, to her surprise, they had started to replant vines. Her mother opened the door with a stoic look, staring at her daughter, granddaughter, and great-granddaughter with an expressionless face and then walked past them with a bucket in her hand, making her way to her vineyard. The woman followed her mother, motioning for her daughter and granddaughter to follow her, racking her brain about what to say to her mother as she knew she had abandoned her parents for decades and didn’t know how to apologize. Then, her mother placed the bucket on the ground near a hole she had already dug. She beckoned for her granddaughter and little great-granddaughter to kneel next to her as they would plant a grapevine together. As they all started to push the earth around the trunk of the vine, the woman looked up at her daughter, who stood there in shock, and smiled at her as tears rolled down her eyes. She knew at that moment that there was no forgiveness needed as nothing was more important than family.

And that is what Rodolfo Bastida sees every day when he walks through the vines to make his wines for Bodega Ramón Bilbao – all the stories of the generations that came before him and how his mission is to honor those stories. 

***Link to original Forbes article: https://www.forbes.com/sites/cathrinetodd/2024/03/21/100-year-old-wine-producer-makes-rioja-wine-from-old-vines

Lineup of Ramón Bilbao Mirto wines
Photo Credit: Cathrine Todd
Lalomba by Ramón Bilbao
Photo Credit: Cathrine Todd

Lalomba by Ramón Bilbao

2017 Lalomba, Finca Lalinde, Monte Yerga, Rioja Oriental, Rioja, Spain: A blend of 90% Garnacha and 10% Viura from the single vineyard estate named Lalinde. A stunning rosé with a pale pink color with highlights of copper with grapefruit and lemon zest aromas with creamy lemon meringue and candied violet flavors on the palate with bright acidity and intense minerality.

2022 Lalomba, Finca Lalinde, Monte Yerga, Rioja Oriental, Rioja, Spain: A blend of 90% Garnacha and 10% Viura from the single vineyard estate named Lalinde located on a hillside on the Yerga mountain range. An intriguing rosé with smoky minerality and a bouquet of wildflowers on the nose with delicious mixed berries and juicy white peaches that has a refreshing finish with notes of wet river stones.  

Mirto by Ramón Bilbao 

1999 Ramón Bilbao ‘Mirto’ Villalba, Rioja Alta, Rioja, Spain: 100% Tempranillo. From plots in the village of Villalba near the town of Haro with old vines around 70 years old. A multifaceted nose with smoldering cigar, fresh tobacco leaf, touch of bacon fat and broken earth with rich blackberry flavors intermixed with exotic spice and very fine tannins that caress the palate.

2006 Ramón Bilbao ‘Mirto’ Villalba, Rioja Alta, Rioja, Spain: 100% Tempranillo. From plots in the village of Villalba near the town of Haro with old vines around 80 years old. Beautiful fruit aromas on the nose with hints of licorice and fresh herbs that has fleshy black cherry fruit flavors with a broad body. 

2010 Ramón Bilbao ‘Mirto’ Ábalos, Rioja Alta, Rioja, Spain: 100% Tempranillo. It comes from plots in the village of Ábalos near the town of Haro with old vines around 80 years old. Wafting notes of espresso and cocoa nibs entice with its delicious aromas, plush texture, generous fruit flavors, and complex cigar boxes and tar notes.

2016 Ramón Bilbao ‘Mirto’ Cuzcurrita, Rioja Alta, Rioja, Spain: 100% Tempranillo. From plots in the village of Cuzcurrita near the town of Haro with old vines over 90 years old. An enchanting bouquet of violets on the nose with delectable blueberry tart flavors on the palate with very silky tannins that are finely sculpted and has a long, flavorful finish.

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