ContinoGraciano2014

Contino, founded in 1973, was the first château-style winery in Rioja, created by CVNE together with the owners of a 62-hectare estate in Rioja Alavesa. The property dates back to the 16th century and takes its name from the contino, the officer who commanded a guard of one hundred soldiers protecting the Royal Family continuously from the time of the Catholic Monarchs.rrAccording to tradition, Saint Gregory, the patron saint of vineyards, passed through these lands, inspiring his presence in the winery’s logo and the naming of several vineyard plots.rrAll wines are made exclusively from grapes grown in the vineyards surrounding the old manor house, harvested plot by plot with each origin carefully recorded. The combination of soils, an Atlantic–Mediterranean climate, and refined winemaking techniques has made Contino, more than 30 years after its first vintage, a benchmark wine. The 62 hectares of vineyards in Laserna, near Laguardia, are sheltered by the Cerro de la Mesa hill, which creates a distinctive orientation and mesoclimate.rrThe Graciano is limited to around 6,000 bottles per vintage and is aged for 15 months in new oak (90% French and 10% Hungarian) and then 12 months in bottle. Contino Graciano is made from a 3,7-hectare estate planted in two rounds, the first in 1979 and the second in 1989. The 30 to 40-year-old vineyards are at an altitude over 400 metres above sea level, on the basin of the Ebro river.rrTechnical Information:rGrape Varieties: GracianorAgeing: 13 months in 90% French and 10% Hungarian oak barrelsrProduction: 3060 BottlesrAlcohol: 13.50%rrTasting Note: A crazy energy to this wine with blue fruits and violets as well as stone, mineral and violet character. Full body, silky tannins and a bright finish. Some burnt orange. Energy. Unique. â€?Tasted by James Suckling