The Luis Canas & Amaren Estate
Bodega Luis Cañas is a family winery which for more than two centuries has devoted itself to viticulture and winemaking. However, it was not until 1970 when Luis Cañas first hit the market selling its young bottled wine which until then it had sold only in bulk. From this date onwards, it begins to experience a rise in sales and what is today one of the leading wineries in the Rioja Alavesa begins to take shape.
1989 marks a new milestone in the winery’s transformation when Juan Luis Cañas, the only son of Mr Luis Cañas takes charge of the same. Aged 33 , he brings fresh ideas to the table and begins to develop new wines at the same time as he promotes increasingly aged wines, beginning to lay the foundations of what would later become the new winery.
The Region
-The Climate: Fundamentally Atlantic, which thanks to the protection that the Sierra Cantabria provides from the coldest northern winds as well as Continental and Mediterranean influence.
The average annual temperature oscillates between 12.6º and the 13.2º. There are large fluctuations in the temperature between the morning and the night at harvest time, which is very positive for the quality of the grapes.
Average rainfall is around 400 mm. and 600 mm
- The Soil: The soil is poor and of a clay loam or chalky clay type, ideal for obtaining grapes of an extraordinary quality.
- Altitude: Our vineyards are located between 450 and 600 meters in altitude.
- Grape Varietals:
TEMPRANILLO: The most important indigenous red variety in the D.O. RIOJA. And one of the biggest varieties in the world. It produces wines for length ageing, very balanced in their alcoholic degrees, color and acidity.
GRACIANO: An indigenous red variety with a great future in Rioja and so its surface area is increasing. It produces wines with considerable acidity and polyphonelic content, ideal for growing, whose aroma is superior in intensity to the rest of the Rioja verities. A perfect complement to the Tempranillo for ageing.
VIURA: The most extensive white variety in Rioja. It produces fruity wines, with a floral aroma and a notable degree of acidity, ideal for preparing both young white and vintage wines.
MALVASÍA: A White variety that produces wines of great oiliness and aromatic intensity.
The Luis Canas & Amaren Estate
Bodega Luis Cañas is a family winery which for more than two centuries has devoted itself to viticulture and winemaking. However, it was not until 1970 when Luis Cañas first hit the market selling its young bottled wine which until then it had sold only in bulk. From this date onwards, it begins to experience a rise in sales and what is today one of the leading wineries in the Rioja Alavesa begins to take shape.
1989 marks a new milestone in the winery’s transformation when Juan Luis Cañas, the only son of Mr Luis Cañas takes charge of the same. Aged 33 , he brings fresh ideas to the table and begins to develop new wines at the same time as he promotes increasingly aged wines, beginning to lay the foundations of what would later become the new winery.
The Region
-The Climate: Fundamentally Atlantic, which thanks to the protection that the Sierra Cantabria provides from the coldest northern winds as well as Continental and Mediterranean influence.
The average annual temperature oscillates between 12.6º and the 13.2º. There are large fluctuations in the temperature between the morning and the night at harvest time, which is very positive for the quality of the grapes.
Average rainfall is around 400 mm. and 600 mm
- The Soil: The soil is poor and of a clay loam or chalky clay type, ideal for obtaining grapes of an extraordinary quality.
- Altitude: Our vineyards are located between 450 and 600 meters in altitude.
- Grape Varietals:
TEMPRANILLO: The most important indigenous red variety in the D.O. RIOJA. And one of the biggest varieties in the world. It produces wines for length ageing, very balanced in their alcoholic degrees, color and acidity.
GRACIANO: An indigenous red variety with a great future in Rioja and so its surface area is increasing. It produces wines with considerable acidity and polyphonelic content, ideal for growing, whose aroma is superior in intensity to the rest of the Rioja verities. A perfect complement to the Tempranillo for ageing.
VIURA: The most extensive white variety in Rioja. It produces fruity wines, with a floral aroma and a notable degree of acidity, ideal for preparing both young white and vintage wines.
MALVASÍA: A White variety that produces wines of great oiliness and aromatic intensity.
The Luis Canas & Amaren Vineyards
The vineyard is the star of a landscape where the plots of land, mainly located on slopes and terraces, being protected to the north by the imposing presence of the Sierra Cantabria.
Villabuena is a town located to the south of the province of Álava, where the city of the vineyard and the preparation of wines is practically the sole activity that is carried on.
It is in this region of Rioja Alavesa where the most suitable conditions arise for obtaining large vineyards of a superior quality.
22 hectares of vines of over 60 years of age and 30 hectares of between 30 and 60 years make up a vineyard which is the strongest indication of the wine cellar.
The old vineyards achieve a perfect balance given their low production level, having very deep roots that offer the wines complexity, minerality and personality as well as making them more resistant to drought.
Vines that are checked and run by the agronomic engineers from our field department in which rational wine-growing that is respectful of the environment.
All of the forms of treatment that are carried on at the vineyard are restricted to minimally aggressive products and methods which include amongst others, the prohibition against the use of herbicides and the use of fertilizers that are always organic.
The purpose is to make use of a vineyard with a powerful defensive system that is capable of being defended from external threats with no need for artificial assistance. In this way we achieve complete respect for the land. The native soil is a fundamental part of the distinguishing personality of each region. We also manage to make the vines healthier.
22 hectares of vines of over 60 years of age and 30 hectares of between 30 and 60 years make up a vineyard which is the strongest indication of the wine cellar.
The old vineyards achieve a perfect balance given their low production level, having very deep roots that offer the wines complexity, minerality and personality as well as making them more resistant to drought.
Vines that are checked and run by the agronomic engineers from our field department in which rational wine-growing that is respectful of the environment.
All of the forms of treatment that are carried on at the vineyard are restricted to minimally aggressive products and methods which include amongst others, the prohibition against the use of herbicides and the use of fertilizers that are always organic.
The purpose is to make use of a vineyard with a powerful defensive system that is capable of being defended from external threats with no need for artificial assistance. In this way we achieve complete respect for the land. The native soil is a fundamental part of the distinguishing personality of each region. We also manage to make the vines healthier.
Luis Canas Rioja Hiru 3 Racimos is 100% Tempranillo
60 years old vines
Alcohol: 14,5º
Total acidity: 6,0 gr/l
Volatile acidity: 0,50 gr/l
PH: 3,47
Free SO2: 25 mg/l
Reducing sugars: 1,8 gr/l
This wine is a response to our quest to find the perfect wine, one that combines structure, complexity and balance. It is the result of a careful selection of grapes not from the vines but from the appropriate clusters, those that naturally produce three or less clusters and which are 60 or more years of age. Vines situated on slopes and terraces of limestone and clay soil, well exposed to the sun. These grapes are harvested in small boxes at the very best moment, then inspected on the selection table and vinified in small groups at a controlled temperature. After alcoholic fermentation they are macerated to extract their full potential. The resulting most is then settled in new French and American oak barrels to undergo malolactic fermentation. This second fermentation ensures the wine gains in complexity and aromatic intensity, it also stabilises its colour.
Fully ripened and concentrated fruit aromas with balsamic and spicy mineral nuances, notes of blackberry and blueberry preserve wrapped in creamy oak, caramel and milky coffee tones. The palate is concentrated, unctuous in the centre, balanced, sweet, with fine tannins. Very long finish, expressive, clearly marked with the character of the soil.
Hiru 3 racimos is a complex wine and so is its pairing with food. We must consider two options, either drink it in light sips so that the wine itself is the star of the feast, or serve with solid dishes that can match its vigour. An Iberian pork loin with roasted peppers, steak with mushrooms and plums, wild boar stew or pheasant in port are dishes that blend incredibly with this characterful wine.
Luis Canas Rioja Reserva is made from 100 percent 95% Tempranillo and 5% Graciano
A classic style Rioja Reserva from one of the regions most enduring family run wineries. The hillside terraced vineyards are sheltered by the Sierra Cantabria Mountains to the north from harsh weather extremes. Small plot production is utilized in this region of infertile chalky clay soil to produce clusters of excellent quality. Almost 900 plots are needed to complete the approximately 400 hectares of estate-owned or cellar-controlled vineyards, some with vines more than 100 years in age.
Tasting notes
Rich color. Very pleasant on the nose, subtle and elegant, complex, with aromas of fine wood, ripe fruit, coffee. Thick, unctuous and round on the palate with solid structure and juicy tannins. The second nose shows spiced nuances and black ripe fruit aromas.
Winemaking and aging
Upon entering the bodega, bunches undergo a manual selection and then individual grapes are sorted based on their weight. Following this double selection process, they are de-stemmed and crushed before undergoing fermentation and then aceration in stainless steel tanks for a total of 8 days, obtaining better color extraction as well as much more complex and tannic wines, suitable for prolonged aging.
After its primary fermentation, the wine is placed in barrels where it undergoes malolactic fermentation and is aged for 18 months in French (70%) and American (30%) oak barrels, then aged minimum 18 months in bottle before release.
Total acidity: 5 g./l. Volatile acidity: 0,6 g./l. PH: 3,59 Free SO2: 25 mg./l. Residual sugar: 1,9 g./l.
Excellent with red or white meats, all types of game, roasts, oily fish, rice with meat and cheese. Within Rioja cuisine it is perfection accompanying peppers stuffed with cod, artichokes with ham, migas pastoriles and trotters
The Grade Napa Cabernet Sauvignon Winfield Vineyard is made from Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon.
“This wine expresses a focused balancing act of dark, rich black fruit, and a fine tannin structure, illuminated through the core with a laser-like acidity. The wine displays a deep purple-red hue with a cranberry halo. Aromas of cassis, cinnamon, citrus oil, roasted meat, and lilac swell from the glass.
“The palate is marked by a wave of jet-black brambly fruit up front, followed by an exotic spice mid-palate and a long, complex finish that lasts and lasts expressing notes of flowering jasmine, and oolong tea. The silky tannins hold everything together and will certainly allow this wine to evolve in the cellar for at least 7-10 years.” - Thomas River Brown
Review:
The 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Winfield Vineyard is a blend taken from three blocks in the vineyard. A potent, layered Cabernet, the Winfield is super-expressive today. Dark red cherry, licorice, incense and savory herbs all flesh out in a potent, resonant Calistoga Cabernet that hits all the right notes. This is impressive, to say the least.
-- Antonio Galloni 95 Points
Clos Saint-Jean is a 41-hectare estate in Châteauneuf-du-Pape run by brothers Vincent and Pascal Maurel. Considered by many critics and wine-writers as the preeminent estate espousing the modern style of winemaking in Châteauneuf, this cellar is one of the oldest in the region, having been founded in 1900 by the greatgreat-grandfather of Vincent and Pascal, Edmund Tacussel. A short time after its founding and well before the AOP of Chateauneuf-du-Pape was created in 1923, Edmund began bottling estate wines in 1910.
The farming at Clos Saint-Jean is fully sustainable due to the warm and dry climate, which prevents the need for chemical inputs. Instead, Vincent and Pascal employ organic methods for pest control, mainly pheromones, to prevent pests from taking up residence in their vines, a process called amusingly enough in French, confusion sexuelle. The vines tended manually, and harvest is conducted in several passes entirely by hand.
Deus ex Machina is a literary and dramatic term for a miraculous intervention that interrupts a logical course of events in a plot or play. A suitable name for a cuvée that had it’s start in the torrid vintage of 2003 when Philippe Cambie and Vincent Maurel made the decision to harvest at the end of September, weeks after their neighbors. Deus ex Machina is a blend of old vine Grenache from La Crau, aged in tank with equally ancient Mourvedre from the sandy soils of BoisDauphin aged in demi-muid. Deus ex Machina is only made in the best vintages.
Review:
Lastly, the 2022 Châteauneuf Du Pape Deus-Ex Machina shows a similar profile to the Combes des Fous, yet it brings another level of tannins and concentration. Kirsch liqueur, white flowers, sandalwood, cured meats, and graphite notes all shine here, and it's full-bodied, has a deep, layered, powerful, yet weightless profile, lots of ripe tannins, and a blockbuster of a finish. This ripe, sexy, seamless, incredibly impressive beauty will compete with anything in the vintage. As usual, this cuvée is 60% Grenache and 40% Mourvedre, which is brought up in roughly 40% new demi-muids.
Review: Jeb Dunnuck 97 Points