Jose Pariente Rueda Verdejo

In the 1960s, the winegrower Jose Pariente began the production of artisan white wines with a raw material of extraordinary quality: the Verdejo grape from his Rueda vineyards. He practiced thorough viticulture and believed in his land, in the quality and pleasure of making wine. His desire, to make great white wines, is the goal of the current winery, which his daughter Victoria Pariente founded in 1998.
Twenty years later, Bodegas Jose Pariente maintains a very clear roadmap: innovation and avant-garde, respect for the vineyard and its meticulous care, and the firm commitment to research and development.

Verdejo,

The vineyards of Bodegas José Pariente are spread across two zones: one in Valladolid, which encompasses the areas of Rueda, La Seca, Torrecilla de la Abadesa, and Tordesillas; the other, located in Segovia, encompasses the municipalities of Codorniz and Nava de la Asunción. Organic viticulture is practiced in all of them.

Flat, mid-altitude lands nestled in the Rueda DO, located between 700 and 800 meters above sea level. Due to its latitude, the area is nestled within the Mediterranean climate. However, due to its altitude, it is declared to have continental influence.

The majority of the soils in the vineyards are gravelly, composed of boulders, low in organic matter, and have some limestone outcrops at higher elevations. In addition, there are sandy soils in certain plantations of old vines, this leads to the great minerality in the wines.

The vineyards are affected by seasonal temperature extremes: long, cold winters, short springs with late frosts, and hot, dry summers with occasional storms. The grape varieties planted are Verdejo, a native variety of the area, and Sauvignon Blanc.

The sharp contrast in temperatures between day and night is a key factor in achieving the balance between the sugar the grapes gain from the sun and the acidity they retain in the low night time temperatures. Rainfall is scarce, reaching a minimum of 300 litres and a maximum of 600 litres per year.

Made with 30-year-old vineyards and a selection of old vines. Its aroma offers the minerality of the area's stony soil, combined with nuances of fennel, anise, white fruit, and stone fruit. On the palate, it is unctuous, ripe, and elegant, with a soft touch of bitterness on the finish, characteristic of the Verdejo variety. A complex and intense wine. The house's signature.

Nolan - Text from the Spotlight on White Wines of Spain Blog

Heading even further inland, we reach the high-altitude plateau of Castilla Y Leon. This is the region of Rueda, an overwhelmingly white wine producing region on the South bank of the mighty Duero river. Heading West, takes you downstream where you will end up in Portugal. Here the waterway is renamed the Douro and is where all the grapes destined for Port are grown.

The landscape in Rueda is very low in nutrients, plants have to struggle to survive here. The only viable agriculture here is either grapes or grains. Summers are hot and harsh, winters are cold and harsh! Luckily for our focus on white wines today, the region has a huge diurnal swing in temperature. Searingly hot days are followed by cool nights thanks to the high altitude, this allows the grapes to cling onto their vital high acidity that makes them so refreshing and delicious.

By far the most important grape of Rueda is Verdejo. This is likely a native Castillian grape, though there are theories of it having originated in Northern Africa in the 11th century. As a varietal, Verdejo is highly aromatic with herbs, nuts and tropical fruit. White wines from Rueda are an excellent and vastly more interesting alternative to Sauvignon Blanc. That is just my opinion, but give one a go!

Jose Pariente started making wine in Rueda in the 1960’s and is one of the winemakers responsible for the modern face of the region. For this wine, Jose uses fruit from 30-year-old, organically grown vines. To retain the fruit purity, the wine is only treated in stainless steel and the result is a wonderfully bright expression of Verdejo. The wine smells of stoney minerals with nuances of fennel, anise, white fruit, and stone fruit.