The Rioja wine doesn’t not only come from the Rioja region. Also the neighbouring Basque and Navarre region produce these big Rioja wines. The Rioja wine region is the first area in Spain that gained the DO status and in 1991 received the higher-quality DOCa status. The red Rioja wine is generally a blend of different grape varieties.

1. Tempranillo, which is an early ripening grape (Temprano also means early in Spanish) which the crop is already mid to late September.
2. Garnacha, Grenache grape or the French. This variety ripens two weeks longer than the Tempranillo. You can find it mostly planted in the Rioja Baja and Rioja wine is almost all present.
3. There are also local varieties Mazuelo, Graciano and Viura (white grape).

The white Rioja wine consists of the following varieties: Viura (the main grape of white Rioja wine), the white Malvasia and Garnacha.

Maturing Rioja wine requirements indicated on the back label
• Rioja Joven: never or very short barrel aging and will have had one year after the harvest to market.
Rioja Crianza
• The red variant allowed after the third year of harvest on the market, which at least one year barrel aging and bottle aging the rest. The white version is one year after harvest on the market and has undergone at least six months barrel aging.
• Rioja Reserva: The red version is not for the fourth year after harvest on the market and the minimum is twelve months barrel aging and bottle aging twenty-four months or vice versa. The white and pink version may after two years on the market, of which six months vatrijping.
• Rioja Gran Reserva: this format, only the wines from an exceptional vintage. The red Gran Reservas appear in the sixth year on the market with a minimum of two years houtijping and a bottle maturation of three years. The white and pink Gran Reservas are exceptional and may be sold after four years. They had at least six months barrel aging.

Wine / food combination Rioja Wine
The white Rioja is delicious with tuna, seafood.
The rose can also fine aperitif besides drinking with white meat and fried tuna
The red Rioja go well with red meats, game, delicious dried hams and various sausages and cheeses that Spain has.