Producer · Rioja, Spain

Orben

Orben is a Rioja Alavesa project shared by friends who love good food and wine. The Antón family, who own Bodega Izadi, hold 75%. The rest belongs to a number of Spain's top restaurant owners.

The 29 hectares of vines sit below the Sierra Cantabria mountains in Laguardia, next to Izadi's. They are split into 74 parcels of old bush vines, planted between 1945 and 1954, which give small crops of concentrated fruit. Limestone and clay soils, a height of around 450 metres and the Atlantic all help keep things fresh.

Winemaker Ruth Rodriguez leads the team, making a modern Rioja where the fruit comes first, with a light toasty touch from French oak.

£30.49 to £32.49 a bottle