THE CORNELIO RANGE
The Cornelio range comes from our old vines in Rioja Alta, on the golden mile between San Vicente de la Sonsierra, Briones and San Asensio. These vines are grown in a way that preserves the ecosystem as much as possible and produces the best fruit following organic farming principles that provide distinguishing parameters to traditional agriculture.
We work with the local grape varieties that best represent Rioja wine: Tempranillo and Garnacha for red and rosé wines and Viura for white wines.
These vines are the most important ones across the 28 plots of land that make up our vineyards. They are trained as bush and take up about 74 acres.
OLD VINES
Facing the sun under the slopes of Monte Toloño, in the heart of Sierra Cantabria, at an altitude of 590 meters, we find this vineyard estate of exceptional quality that withstands the poor soil, with bedrock less than 40 cms from the surface. The average annual production is 2500-3000 Kg/ Ha, which, together with its old vines, planted in 1960 in San Vicente de la Sonsierra, provide grapes of the Viura variety, with a pure golden color, from which an aromatic and smooth white wine is obtained.
PASSION
High-quality Tempranillo vineyard that produces truly expressive clusters. Located on a south-facing terrace on calcareous-clay soil with pebbles that act as heaters during the ripening season.
OLD VINEYARDS
In this site, located in Briones, we find a vineyard of old vines, planted in 1970, in calcareous clay soils at an altitude of 600 meters. The eastern exposure of the estate results in fresh wines, with balanced acidity and the unctuous character of the old vines, typical of the Tempranillo grape.
SINCE 1950
In Briones we find one of the oldest vineyards, with very old vines planted in 1950. It is a small plot, at an altitude of 580 meters above sea level, facing east. From the sum of the fertile calcareous clay soil and the care we give it, we obtain clusters of Tempranillo grapes with a great concentration of aromas and flavors.
SAN VICENTE DE LA SONSIERRA
At an altitude of 530 meters in San Vicente de la Sonsierra we find vines planted in 1955, in calcareous clay soils that offer us fruits of the Tempranillo variety. These are late ripening grapes, but with very healthy clusters, a consequence of the Sierra Cantabria wind and the north-south orientation of the vines.
TEMPRANILLO VINEYARD
Tempranillo vineyard planted prior to 1970 at an altitude of 580 meters. The age of the vineyard makes it self-regulating, which helps the Tempranillo grape variety to ripen properly and produce wines with a magnificent balance and volume in the mouth; it also has a great polyphenolic load. This terroir is located in Briones, in a calcareous clay soil with an east-west orientation.
At 570 METERS OF ALTITUDE
Balanced, calcareous-clay soils, with perfect ventilation due to its north-south orientation. Vineyards of the Tempranillo variety in San Vicente de la Sonsierra. The vineyard is located at an altitude of 570 meters, obtaining grapes of very good quality with excellent ripening.
CORNELIO IMPERIAL AUTOR JM
Vineyard planted at an altitude of 540 meters in the municipality of San Vicente de la Sonsierra. The calcareous clay soil offers us small berries of the tempranillo variety, but with a high polyphenolic concentration. The plantation has a north-south orientation. This exposure is reflected in the wines as they have a greater contribution of unctuousness and volume.
SAN ASENSIO
From this place we obtain our Tempranillo clusters with its maximum expression. In San Asensio we can find these vineyards on a terrace at an altitude of 560 meters above sea level, with a calcareous clay soil, with east-west exposure. This estate has boulders that act as embers during the ripening period. All this is reflected in the wines we obtain from this piece, recurrently awarded in all competitions.
EARLY RIPENING
At 480 meters above sea level, in San Vicente de la Sonsierra is located this estate, where we find the Tempranillo variety. The calcareous clay soil of pebbles, together with the north-south orientation, makes the grapes ripen early and have a high alcohol content.
In the Vega Vella range
All certified according to the EU standards on organic farming– our vineyards are dominated by the Tempranillo variety, but we also grow other regional varieties such as Graciano, Garnacha and Maturana Tinta, which are key to producing red wines with a distinguished character.
Our white wines are produced with the Sauvignon Blanc, Garnacha Blanca and Chardonnay varieties that grow alongside our red grapes happily surrounded by scrub.
The vineyards grow at a 400 meter altitude on the northern plain of the Ebro River –on the western side of Rioja– and make the most of the exceptional microclimate that greatly benefits the winegrowing with its cold dry winters and warm summers.
Our vines are mostly visited by the north-western wind called the “cierzo” and occasional showers, which is the perfect mix for organic winegrowing.
The land is made up of calcareous soil and pebbles, which enrich and air the soil. There is also a vast amount of sandy loam and some gypsum. Added to its north-west/south-east facing position, our vineyards enjoy the perfect exposure and ventilation to obtain the desired ripening. Some vines are over 50 years old and tend to produce grapes with exceptional natural characteristics and are therefore perfect to make great wines with the unique character of this terroir.
Our vineyards are vast, but the thorough control required for organic winegrowing makes us handle our vines with utmost care and precision.
Assuring the quality of our grapes can only be achieved by limiting the production, no more than 5,000 kg per 2.5 acres, and with a thorough technological control from the very first stage of the growing cycle and right up to the harvesting, always relying on the expertise we have gained over more than three decades in organic farming. This technology is also applied during the winemaking and provides great flexibility at this stage based on the grape variety, the vineyard and the characteristics of the fruit.
SAUVIGNON BLANC
These soils, with the Sauvignon Blanc variety, have a north-south orientation, in the lowest area of the valley, which makes it more humid. The vines were planted in 2012 in fertile soil, with silts and clays. These vines, like the rest of the range, are organic, natural products are used for their care, which makes them top quality organic vineyards. These soils are perfect for this grape variety.
GRACIANO
This organic vineyard, located on a steep alluvial slope with pebbles, is ideal for obtaining wines of great length, such as Grandes Reservas and Monovarietales. The soil is poor as a result of the washing to which it is subjected during the rainy season. To correct this, ground covers are used on the roads. It was planted in 1995 with a south-southwest orientation and the Graciano variety was chosen for this estate as it combines perfectly with the characteristics of the terrain.
ORGANIC RED GRENACHE
Around 2004, it was decided to plant the organic single varietal Garnacha Tinta on this 8-hectare plot of gypsum and boulders in the upper part and silt and clay in the lower part. With its altitude of 450 meters, it receives fresh breezes from the Sierra de Urbasa during the ripening process, which makes for fantastic rosés in the lower part and good reds in the upper part.
ORGANIC WHITE GRENACHE
In order to continue our commitment to organic farming, the organic Garnacha Blanca variety was planted on this estate in 2014. It is a silt-clay soil with a north-south orientation. Field of low production; this type of variety has a long cycle, which together with the soil makes us obtain very unctuous wines with high alcohol content.
WINES FOR AGING
This is a fertile land of silt with alluvial pebbles, where the Tempranillo variety was planted in 1998. This organic vineyard offers us very good red grape wines due to the clone used, as it is a low productive land but of great quality and has a very good sun exposure thanks to its north-south orientation. It is an ideal vineyard for aging wines.
ORGANIC TEMPRANILLO
At 400 meters above sea level, with an average rainfall of 450 mm and a continental Mediterranean climate, we have perfect conditions for the production of organic Tempranillo grapes. The soil is silty-clayey with gypsum and marl on top. It was planted in 1985 and has a north-south orientation.
BODEGAS CORNELIO
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