ARTUKE
Rioja Alavesa, Spain
A burgeoning youth movement in Rioja has some viñadores breaking free of traditional, restrictive barrel ageing classifications and focusing instead on purity of fruit. Brothers Arturo and Kike of Bodegas y Viñedos Artuke in Rioja Alavesa are among the movement's vanguard, combining their fifth-generation expertise with daring zeal and exemplary terroir to bring welcome vitality to an old-school category.
Arturo and Kike hold a special perspective. Their father Roberto was the fourth generation of the family to grow grapes and make wine in the soaring elevations of Rioja Alavesa, but the first to bottle it (previously the family sold it off in bulk to the large houses in Haro). He started his operation off by driving through all of Basque Country north of Rioja selling wine out of his van, quite literally going door-to-door. Some of the vines the brothers still work today are the same Roberto and their grandfather used to farm, many planted in the 1950's, some as far back as the 20's. They grow primarily Tempranillo, but there are some Graciano and Viura vines scattered throughout their 30 hectares. All of their land is north of the Ebro River, grouped around the villages of Baños de Ebro, Ábalos, San Vicente de Sonsierra, and Samaniego.
Arturo followed by attending enology school and earning a master's degree. In joining Roberto at the winery, he immediately set about converting to organic viticulture and studying the composition of the soil of their holdings. In doing so, he found that calcareous sandstone bedrock with sand, clay and alluvium draped over top: less like the breakdown of Bordeaux, and far closer to Barolo or Barbaresco. This was the framework and inspiration he and Kike needed to begin viewing their land in terms of crus and parcels.
Once the crop is harvested each year, "balanced winemaking" is the mantra in the winery. Arturo still laughs about how he and his father used to argue over maceration time and oak usage. To express place, the brothers emphasize gentle fermentations in stainless steel tank and short macerations, careful to avoid overextraction. Wood is used, but always neutral, and always large format (500-600L or 3,500L French foudres). Everything is spontaneously fermented with indigenous yeasts, yet strikingly clean and precise results in the glass.
One of their most prizes parcels of vineyard is Finca de los Locos, "The Crazy People’s Plot," a 3-hectare site that Arturo and Kike's grandfather planted on a high terrace (550m) overlooking the Ebro. His neighbors and friends called him mad, for planting on such poor clay and sand soil, but his stubbornness paid off: these vines have fought to thrive, and produce concentrated, intense fruit. It is a testament to the de Miguel family's intrepid nature and profound viticultural instincts.
Wines
Artuke Rioja "Finca de los Locos"