Our Origins

The Arzuaga winery is in Valladolid, in the heart of the Ribera del Duero Designation of Origin. The wines come from La Planta, an estate belonging to the Arzuaga family in Quintanilla de Onésimo, in the province of Valladolid. This is an excellent location for vine-growing, as the plants receive the sun and moisture they need for the grapes to ripen perfectly.

There can be no doubt that Arzuaga wines are made based on three premises: the soil, the climate and the orientation of the vineyards.

The local flora and fauna coexist perfectly with the vines in La Planta. The flora includes pines, holm oaks and savin juniper, and, among the animals are wild boars and red deer. This coexistence clearly shows the love the Arzuaga family feels for the natural world. The estate covers 1,400 hectares (3,500 acres) in a wonderful location in the heart of the Ribera del Duero Designation of Origin area: its Golden Mile.

It was at the beginning of the 1990s when, after buying La Planta estate, Florentino Arzuaga began planting vines, building the winery and, of course, making wine.

The Vineyard

Care begins in the vineyard, because it is impossible to make a good wine without healthy, high-quality grapes. We ensure that yield is very limited, associated with the low fertility of the soils and the tough Castilian climate. If production is too high, the wine loses quality and the flavour is less concentrated. The excellent quality of the grapes – an essential ingredient of good wine, the care with which the vines are looked after and a passion for hard work have earned Arzuaga wines a fine reputation in the Ribera del Duero Designation of Origin.

For Arzuaga, quality is fundamental and this is the area where most care is taken.

The Arzuaga Winery has 210 hectares (520 acres) of vineyards distributed between the immediate surroundings of the winery and the natural area of La Planta estate. The Arzuaga vineyards enjoy a unique climate: sunshine and clear skies in the daytime and cool, damp nights. This climatic combination means the grapes ripen slowly but perfectly, producing healthy fruit with plenty of colour, full of sugar and aromatic acidity. In this region of Castile, where low fertility is a feature of the soils, the Tinto Fino or Tempranillo variety is grown, together with the French grapes Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. 80% of the vineyards are more than 20 years old, with a production of more or less 4,000 kg/ha. Bodegas Arzuaga also has vineyards outside the province of Valladolid, in Malagón, in Ciudad Real, where its Pago Florentino wine is made..

Grape Varieties

TINTO FINO or TEMPRANILLO
Exceptionally well adapted. Closed petiolar sinus, rough/hairy underside. Compact, medium-sized double-shouldered clusters of grapes. Strongly violet coloured wines with outstanding blackberry aromas mixed with other black fruit. Saturated tannins turning sweet when over-ripened. Medium acidity.

CABERNET SAUVIGNON
Well adapted. Open, U-shaped petiolar sinus. Underside not very rough/hairy. Small, compact bunches of small, spherical berries. Late budding. Highly acidic wines featuring aromas of green pepper, changing to black fruit with over-ripening. Notable tannins.

MERLOT
Reasonably well adapted, although fruit set is difficult. Medium-sized leaves with open petiolar sinus. Rough underside and bald leafstalk. Medium-sized, loose bunches of blueish-black berries. Wines with medium acidity featuring aromas of black fruit combined with hints of dried fruit. Medium tannin.

CHARDONNAY
This is a white grape vine (Vitis vinifera) originally grown in the Burgundy region of France. The grapes are small and rounded and take on honey-coloured tones when ripe. When made into wine, the result is mild, aromatic must. When aged in oak barrels it takes on outstanding qualities of flavour and aroma.

The Location

“Arzuaga and Ribera del Duero: among the 52 destinations worldwide recommended to visit in 2018” New York Times