Winemaker Notes
Very intense, with a dark cherry background and a powerful red rim. When you bring the glass closer to your nose, you feel enormous depth, it seems like you never reach the bottom. The black fruit comes out in spurts, marked by plum and accompanied by many mineral sensations of limestone and Indian ink. Sweet spices appear that are reminiscent of cloves and cinnamon, with notes of cocoa, dark chocolate and the memory of the earth. A pleasant density is felt in the aromas and menthol flashes emerge that leave a balsamic sensation. Everything is in balance, perfectly assembled. It is voluminous, full and light at the same time, with a huge retronasal passage. The black fruit marks the line of the plum as the protagonist, but there are red and fresh flashes of cherry. Minerality and sweet spices accompany this wonderful landscape. Very good tannin, it will live for many years and will be one of the best RODA I that they have made. Great feeling of fullness, impeccable balance and enormous elegance. Sensation of greatness and pleasure: a jewel.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Immense depth and exuberance here. Fine spices, dark plums, fresh blackberries, blueberries, graphite and crushed stones. Naturally concentrated, broad, vertical and full-bodied, but still fluid and linear. Crumbled, dusty tannins grow on the palate, leading it to a juicy, tightly wound finish that goes on and on. One of the best Roda I? Drinkable now upon decanting, but much better from 2025.
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Wine Spectator
Long and supple, this harmonious red offers flavors of ripe black cherry and currant laced with cocoa powder, dried thyme, violet, mineral and smoked paprika notes. Its refined structure is framed by fine-grained, muscular tannins and balsamico-infused acidity. Tempranillo and a dollop of Graciano. Drink now through 2040. 10,000 cases made, 500 cases imported.
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Vinous
The 2019 Roda I is 95% Tempranillo and 5% Graciano sourced from Haro in Rioja Alta. Aged 16 months in French oak barrels (50% new, 50% second use), this deep purple wine offers an intense oaky aroma. Notes of cherry and blackberry meet tutti-frutti, caramel, hard candy and sandalwood. Dry, rich and flavorful on the palate, this red offers a compact and juicy flow that lingers on the fruit—a delicate, rich Rioja.
Hailed as the star red variety in Spain’s most celebrated wine region, Tempranillo from Rioja, or simply labeled, “Rioja,” produces elegant wines with complex notes of red and black fruit, crushed rock, leather, toast and tobacco, whose best examples are fully capable of decades of improvement in the cellar.
Rioja wines are typically a blend of fruit from its three sub-regions: Rioja Alta, Rioja Alavesa and Rioja Oriental, although specific sub-region (zonas), village (municipios) and vineyard (viñedo singular) wines can now be labeled. Rioja Alta and Alavesa, at the highest elevations, are considered to be the source of the brightest, most elegant fruit, while grapes from the warmer and drier, Rioja Oriental, produce wines with deep color, great body and richness.