Bideona Mayela Rioja Alavesa

Bideona, founded in 2018, is a winery based in the heart of Rioja Alavesa which offers a new perspective on wines made in Rioja: here the emphasis is on site, rather than ageing. The vineyards are situated on the slopes of the Sierra Cantabria, surrounding the villages of Villabuena, Leza, Laguardia and Baños del Ebro, with each terroir producing wines with distinctive character.

The vines are extremely old and low yielding; many were planted in the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s and they deliver concentrated juice with a clear identity. Vines are planted on hillsides in soils with a high percentage of limestone, a characteristic that sets Alavesa apart from the rest of Rioja, together with high altitude and vineyard age. This is what helps to create the balanced and quality focused wines that Bideona aims for. The grapes come from 300 small, carefully selected parcels. Additionally, the vines are cultivated with the environment in mind, spraying is done only when necessary and minimally. Mayela aims to contribute to the preservation of traditional viticulture and to the sustainability of these historic vineyards.

The winemaking philosophy is to obtain very pure, fresh, and well-textured wines that reflect their origin, the wine itself was made without any methods that would obscure the varietal character of the wine. Displaying pure and intense aromas of dark cherries and blackberries are layered with a hint of violet and clove, the concentrated fruit is beautifully balanced by a fresh palate with chiselled, chalky tannins and a long, mineral finish. This wine forms a part of Bideona`s 'Cosechero 2.0' (Harvester) project in which there will be a variety of six different labels on the wine which feature different illustrations of the growers. This is so they can pay tribute to the hard work which goes into making the wine.