The Eguren family have been making wine in San Vicente de la Sonsierra since 1870. Sierra Cantabria, the spearhead winery of the Egurens, produces traditional but classy Riojan wines that often have a percentage of American oak maturation. The well-crafted range begins with the great value Cosecha through to the single vineyard super-cuvee's such as the Amancio and Finca El Bosque. Vinedos de Pagenos is an Eguren project  sourcing old vine parcels in Rioja and La Nieta is fast becoming one of Spain's most sought-after wines.  San Vicente, another project of the Egurens, is perched on top of Sonsierra  and comprises of a single vineyard the Reserva style.

The 2006 Collecion Privada was sourced from some of the estate's oldest Tempranillo vines. Malolactic fermentation was in barrel and the wine was aged for 18 months in new French and American oak. It gives up an alluring bouquet of pain grille, liquid mineral, lavender, incense, and blackberry. On the palate it is layered, medium to full-bodied, ripe, and complex. Give this lengthy effort 3-4 years of additional cellaring and drink it from 2013 to 2026. WA 92/100

The 2005 El Puntido is 100% Tempranillo sourced from a vineyard of the same name planted in 1975. Malolactic fermentation was sur lie in new French oak for four months followed by 18 months in new French barriques. Purple/black-colored with a brooding nose of great promise, it shows off notes of new oak, crushed stone, scorched earth, roasted herbs, incense, and blackberry. Voluminous yet elegant on the palate, it is mouth-filling and rich with gobs of fruit and plenty of ripe tannin. Give this lengthy effort 6-8 years of cellaring and drink it from 2016 to 2030.

Senoria de San Vicente - Rioja

Being one of the two Spanish DOC's, Priorat is littered with old vine Grenache and Carignan; a haven for old-school wine makers seeking the concentration, elegance and balance that only old vines can offer. Through the acquisition of various vineyards and beginning to understand the potential of the area, Eben Sadie's Terroir Al Limit 2006s are an amazing array of wines that stray far from the soulless over-ripe wines that seem steal all the glory.

But what makes these wines so different and so amazing? In an effort to portray each vineyard as closely as possible from soil to glass, Sadie went back to basics. From the naturally low yields and berry selection, he literally wades through the must during fermentation in his unique form of pigeage. This allows all his senses the opportunity to gauge the progress of the wine, monitor extraction levels and learn about each individual vineyard. 'I can literally stand in the glass and feel the wine' he laughs. There is also a movement towards large foudres (oak barrels) that hardly impart any oak component whatsoever. This goes against the extracted, alcoholic and over-ripe wines that have put Priorat on the map. See here for more information.

In a recent tasting held in Madrid by Elmundo, one of Spain's most important publications, 3 of the Terroir Al limit wines made it into the top 10; ahead of the likes of Alvaro Palacios and Clos Mogador.