Another Estate introduced to us by a dear old friend producer in Rioja, the late and much missed Miguel Merino. The estate is in the village of Cordovin in the heart of the Rioja Alta and surrounded by some of the finest vineyards on the route to Santiago. We were a bit wary of white Riojas; many were heavy, over-oaked, flabby wines but the first sip of this made us converts.

The Viura grape really can produce lovely wines when treated correctly and with care. We were a bit wary of white Riojas; many were heavy, over-oaked, flabby wines but the first sip of this made us converts. The Viura grape really can produce lovely wines when treated correctly and with care.

I was introduced to Florentino Martinez in Rioja by my dear-departed friend Miguel Merino. At that time, we decided to keep things simple and just ship the one wine which really took my fancy – the unoaked white. This has proved to be a runaway success, maybe because it is so different to the old-fashioned, heavily oaked white Riojas of the past. More recently we have added the Florentius white which was voted Best White Wine in Rioja 2022 and the new Maturana Red.