red hot vineyards
The panorama of the alleys of the capital of Rioja Alavesa It doesn't make it easy to find this place. The street pay us , in addition to being a hell for defaulters (excuse the joke), it is endless stone or sad cement houses that consolidate its melancholy, old, narrow and rural air. There is no trace of cars (they would not enter) or exumodern constructions that have come to the fore with the umbrella of the 80s. That is why it can be difficult to identify number 78 as the oldest civil building in the entire town. Here stands the pointed door of the new old winery, the headquarters where the wine business began in Alava and which Today it proudly opens to speak of the future with the rocks of the past.
Until February of this year there was a languid and semi-ruined building here. The winery recovered by the Madrid family had left in the 80s far from the walls of The guard , to industrial warehouses that logistically facilitated the production of wine. The old headquarters no longer had the use of yesteryear. But to remember its glorious past and justify the headline of this article, it was restored and reopened to the public 9 months ago with the aim of being history, telling history and continuing to make history. That's why going through it is run into every two by three with the ghost of entire centuries of wine, taxes and fermentation.
The Winery Casa Primicia
First, the justification of the milestone. The actual Scoop House is the heir to a building erected by the Church for the purpose of collect tithes and firstfruits (tenth of a crop and the first fruits of it) to her servants. As there were more cereals and vines in the area, and the latter were the most profitable for the wine business, this collection building evolved into a winery.
But what is perhaps most striking about the Wikipedian point of the visit is the fact that it was a real deal . The Church at that time not only kept the grapes and made the wine with the region's famous carbonic maceration. She also sold it, becoming a supplier of the ' blood of Christ ’ of many abbeys and dioceses, love to trade also with the common people, since the wine was key to the diet of the late Middle Ages.
The first rescued data speak of sales in the year 1420 and, as they point out along the way, there is no record of any similar business that has been open for so many years. Different prices also appeared in the account books rescued from the local churches, which feeds the theory that several wines (all of them from the year) were made with the different bleedings of the grapes. In this way, the tear wine would be the most coveted while the pressed would be the 15th century jug
"After the summer, the grape reaches the market"
All this is learned while walking through its wineries where the stones still sweat wine and walking through glass that reveals the old floors of the place and the marks of the monstrous press. You look at it, attend to it and even admire the beautiful reconstruction that has led it to win the Best of wine tourism award 2013 in the category of architecture, parks and gardens. Casa Primicia is an example of recovery, of modernization respecting the skeleton, the soul and the contact with other less posturing times.
It does not stop here. Like a good wine cellar The guard It has its depth, the most mediatic and amazing part of the old building. Its two galleries speak of the power of the Church, of how she was able to raise such high ceilings and reinforce them with arches that flirt with different styles, but obey pure pragmatism. And… wow! Wine is still made here.
With the recovery of the first home also came the intention to once again stain the earth with the tile red from a good aging . The old logistical problems were saved with an elevator that transports the barrels from outside the wall to the cellar. And the oak returned to the underground tunnel, to dye the stamp, to improve the photon.
As it could not be just any wine, the winery decided that its most special brand would be formed here, the Brotherhood , a wine that It can only be purchased reaching the bowels of this earth, nothing from distributors or online sales . If you want to drink, you will first have to come across its true flavor. The openworks also keep historical vestiges such as a tunnel through which to enter and leave Laguardia in times of conflict through which the character of Pio Baroja Zalacain the adventurer circumvented the Carlist defenses without any difficulty.
Vineyards with a vivid red
The first commandment of any wine tourism business is that every visit must end with a tasting and it is in it that Casa Primicia welcomes the 21st century. Its social room is located in the upper part of the building, with privileged views of the wine region and surprising drinks. Far from being stuck in the first Rioja wine revolution (see going from making young wines to aging them in wood), this winery has wanted to capture new customers who are not convinced by the oxidized Tempranillo, but rather want more. And there they do their magic trick producing four monovarietal wines with 11-12 months in barrel. One for each grape contemplated by the D.O. qualified.
The tempranillo convinces by its versatility (my mother, my aunt and José Mourinho drink it), the Mazuelo for being a rare bird, the Garnacha for its temperance and the Graciano for having turned out so wonderful without alchemy . Good job and care on the part of the winemaker, who has known how to tame each grape by paying homage to this land and earning the applause of critics and the public who are beginning to find it funny to drink what his parents would banish.
Variety of wines from Casa Primicia