Bodegas UKAN

Using grapes from old vines from Rioja Alavesa’s tiny vineyards, Bodegas UKAN is creating ‘Garagiste’ style modern wines in Bordeaux fashion.

UKAN is a small, boutique winery nestled in the heart of Rioja Alavesa, the brainchild of Koldo Eguren who, with his cousin Eduardo, looked at the sea of old vines growing in tiny vineyard plots and determined to create, in Bordeaux fashion, two wines which reflect the very essence of this superb terrain. The wines are made in small-batch oak and concrete tanks with a hand-crafted approach including part carbonic maceration, and limited time in oak barrels.

The cousins take grapes which represent the very best of fruit from vineyards that stretch from Labastida, through Sonsierra to Laguardia, the heartland of the Alavesa. Sustainable and ecological agriculture is at the heart of this project and, concentrating on minimal intervention, they shape the two wines: Senderos de UKAN which is warm, smooth and rich, bursting with ripe classy red fruit with a velvety finish; and bigger brother, UKAN, featuring the grapes coming from the oldest vines - more dark fruit, swish tannins, and a gorgeous texture from French oak, all wrapped up like a classic Bordeaux-style red.

They are two of the most exciting wines to come out of Rioja, full of quality, approachable now but both have room to age: a modern glass of Rioja that reflects its sense of place.