Bodegas las Orcas is a small, family-owned and operated winery in the Rioja Alavesa region of Spain. All the way back to the year 1900 in the medieval town of Laguardia, the family wines were made in their traditional cellar underneath the town, until the construction of their new bodega happened just outside the town walls in 1999. Raimundo and his wife Cristina run the winery today and make remarkable Rioja wines using only fruit from their own family vineyards. The vineyards are tended naturally without the use of artificial fertilizers or pesticides, and the wines are fermented using native yeasts and absolutely minimal filtration (also, all the wines are vegan friendly). As a result, they make exceptional Rioja that brings together historic practices in the cellar, while also taking advantage of some more modern techniques, all while offering great value for authentically made wine from an area where large production has become a norm.
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BODEGAS LAS ORCAS - VIRTUAL VISIT
The following interview was recorded in the fall of 2020 during the Covid lockdown. These videos were intended to promote sales and create requests for samples during a time when promoting new wines was challenging. Although this promotion is over, the videos contain SO MUCH great content that we want to make it available to you.
To watch this Virtual Visit on YouTube - click HERE Pro-Tip: Underneath each video there is an expandable description (click Show More) where you will find 'time-stamps' that are quick-linked to particular topics throughout the video for easy navigation and quick information
The following interview was recorded in the fall of 2020 during the Covid lockdown. These videos were intended to promote sales and create requests for samples during a time when promoting new wines was challenging. Although this promotion is over, the videos contain SO MUCH great content that we want to make it available to you.
To watch this Virtual Visit on YouTube - click HERE Pro-Tip: Underneath each video there is an expandable description (click Show More) where you will find 'time-stamps' that are quick-linked to particular topics throughout the video for easy navigation and quick information
INTRODUCING A NEW LOOK!! The labels below will slowly start taking over the old labels. If you select the previous vintage tech sheets below, you will find the old label images there.
solar de randez blanco
100% viura The Solar de Randez Blanco is made only from Viura grapes, from Raimundo’s wife’s family vineyards that are now nearly 80 years old, creating a blanco which is a dynamite example of a fresh style of white Rioja. Coming from 4 vineyards equaling under 3 hectares, the grapes generally all face the south and sit on Rioja Alavesa’s famous calcareous clay soils. It sat on lees for 3 months and sees regular stirring, adding to the mouthfeel and balance of the wine before it was bottled and ready for the market. The finished result is elegantly crisp, but with texture and balance; accented by a lovely floral note, and loaded with sexy tree fruit aromas. 
solar de randez 'finca san angel'
100% tempranillo A beautiful Rioja from Bodegas las Orcas, the 2018 Finca San Angel is a true ‘Crianza’ entirely from Raimundo’s Finca San Angel vineyard. It is grown at some of the highest elevations in the Rioja Alavesa region. The Tempranillo used in this wine is pulled from the family’s older vineyards, and it comes to the cellar for fermentation in stainless steel. After pressing, the wine is moved to to used French oak barrels for 14 months, and then 4 years in bottle to rest. This Crianza shows gentle yet firm layers of fruits and spices, while mixing with traditional aromas and flavors of La Rioja such as game and leather. With a long finish and an overall very complex structure, this is a wonderful bottle of red to accompany lamb, beef, and anything roasted. |
solar de randez rosado
tempranillo, garnacha, viura The Solar de Randez Rosado is made in the Provenzal style, veering away from the typical ‘Spanish’ approach to bigger rosé wines, and venturing into the more ‘French’ approach of lighter body and fruit. Beautifully pale in color, and made from Garnacha for a solid structure and fresh fruit, Tempranillo for balance and elegance, and a portion of Rai’s old vine Viura to add incredible aromatics of this lovely Rosado. After alcoholic and malolactic fermentation in stainless steel, the wine was bottled and results in gorgeous aromas and flavors. This Rosé has lovely red fruit with a great depth of minerality and overall personality. 
solar de randez reserva
100% tempranillo The Solar de Randez Reserva is a beautiful example of a Rioja Reserva, as it is round and velvety in texture, with well-integrated notes of vanilla, tobacco, and ripe fruit, but has a strong core and structure that reminds of its terroir. Made from carefully selected Tempranillo, the grapes were fermented in stainless steel tanks before moved to oak. The fermented juice is then moved to used French barrels for 24 months, which is then followed by a minimum of 16 months in the bottle before ‘release.’ This remarkably styled Rioja is a remarkable value for such an acclaimed wine from Spain’s most famous region. |
solar de randez joven
100% tempranillo The Solar de Randez Joven (young wine with no oak) comes from a 15-hectare plot of organic 40 to 60 year old vineyards that grow on a hill with both north and south facing slopes. The ripeness levels that come from the different sides of the hill create amazing depth in this fresh and young wine. Sitting on calcareous clay soils mixed with sand and rock, the layers displayed in this dense, ink-colored red are fantastically expressive. After time in stainless steel, and then four months in concrete vat, the resulting fruit is ripe, bright, and a deliciously bright wine. The Joven has beautiful aromas of red and black cherries with a touch of licorice, and the palate follows with a medium-bodied, yet impressively structured mouthfeel for a young wine, full of dark fruits, and a lingering finish of black pepper, licorice and fig. 
solar de randez reserva especial
tempranillo, graciano The Solar de Randez Reserva Especial is the top wine of Raimundo’s Rioja Alavesa selection. Coming from the best of the 60+-year-old vines of the estate, this red is predominately Tempranillo, and blends in about 10% of the family’s gorgeous Graciano vines. The grapes were picked on the same day and fermented naturally together in French barrique, where it also laid to rest for 24 months before bottling. Three years in bottle gave this wine the proper time Raimundo desired before releasing it to the market as a Special Reserve bottling. The result is rich with floral tones, fruit, leather, and spice on the nose. A presence of oak exists on the tongue texturally, adding to the elegance of the classic Rioja backed terroir. |
trikuharri 'entradas de san ángel' blanco
100% viura The Trikuharri Blanco is a gorgeous example of what the estate’s old vine Viura can express, as it comes from the small plot at the entrance of the Finca san Angel vineyard that was planted about 80 years ago. Once the grapes were brought to the cellar after a hand harvest, they were gently pressed, and the juice was placed in both oak and amphora for natural fermentation. Once complete, there were some months of stirring the gross lees to give great volume to the final wine, giving the ultimate expression of Viura before it was racked and continued its aging (about 10 months total in the two vessels – chosen for different levels of micro-oxygenation). The nose is quite fresh and lively, with crisp fruit, citrus, and yellow flowers shooting forth. The volume is full in the mouth, with incredible texture yet precision and clarity in the weight, offering spiced apples, Meyer lemon, honey, and a delicious salty kick. Best with some time to age or ample breathing time to showcase these old vines' layers. |
trikuharri 'entradas de san ángel' tinto
100% tempranillo The Trikuharri Tempranillo is a beautiful red coming from only Tempranillo vines that yield quite little amounts of fruit, as it comes from the small plot at the entrance of the Finca san Angel vineyard that was planted about 80 years ago. Once brought to the cellar, the grapes went through 5 days of pre-fermentative maceration to capture as much delicate nuance and aroma as possible, before a natural fermentation in stainless steel tank. About 20 days passed with the skins, seeing 3 pump overs a day before a gentle pressing of the fruit, and malolactic was also carried out (and completed) in steel tank. The wine was then aged for 18 months, in a blend of French oak barrels (from Rousseau, Anna Selection, Ermitage, Berthomieu and Allary), and concluded in concrete for 4 additional months to relax and integrate. The finished wine is full of wild fruits, savory spices, and soft wood aromas on the nose, and leads to a plush palate that has silky texture yet is full of quite fresh acidity to keep things interesting. Dark brambly fruit, cedar, tobacco, and freshly turned earth are showcased on the long and persistent palate. |