“Honoris was born as the maximum expression of the union of our best and oldest red vines from the country (Tempranillo) and Merlot, a special production and careful aging.” This is how Bodegas Valdubón, from the Ferrer Miranda group, describes its most iconic red river wine. They affirm that their work philosophy is based on “exhaustive knowledge of our vineyards, which allows us to design a personalized production for each plot.”
The harvest is carried out in 20 kilo boxes, and the alcoholic fermentation is carried out in 7,500 liter French oak vats at a controlled temperature of 26 ºC. The grapes are received on dry ice and undergo a pre-fermentation maceration at 6º C. for 6 days, with the aim of extracting all the aromatic potential.
The 2019 vintage was characterized by a short, warm winter with little rain. This adverse rainfall situation lasted throughout the entire spring. The summer was hot and totally dry. The vineyard sprouted normally at the end of April, showing a good number of clusters, which boded well for a good campaign. The fruit collected was small in size, but presented a perfect health condition, high phenolic maturity, medium acidity and high alcohol content.
It is the offspring of grapes (a maximum of six clusters per vine) born in the vineyards of Aldehornos, Montejo and Baños de Valdearados. It is a well-covered red wine, with a cherry color with violet hues. Also the tears that descend into the cup are tinted. It exhibits notes of red and black fruit, in a lactic bed.
At the same time, it presents hints of licorice, aromatic garrigue herbs, spices and vanilla. With a silky tactile sensation, with a refreshing acidity, with 14.3º of alcohol, with the aging in wood well integrated into the wine and with a minty final sensation. With a powerful entry and long and intense aftertaste. Round and elegant.
From the winery, with the technical direction in the hands of Vanesa Insausti, and with a team that includes the winemaker Gloria Diaz and the external advice of the winemaker Xavier Ausàs, it is assured that it is “a wine to enjoy.”
Valdubón points out that it is “ideal” to accompany cured cheeses, blood sausage and roasted or grilled red meats. It also accompanies local dishes such as beef jerky from the Esla Valley or boneless lamb trotters with lamb meatballs from the Fuente Aceña Hotel Boutique restaurant in Quintanilla de Onísimo (Valladolid). The president of the Ferrer Miranda group, Pere Ferrer, likes to pair this wine with a skewer of lamb with vine shoots; while the winery's winemaker, Gloria Diaz, prefers it with a beef tenderloin with mushrooms or sautéed vegetables. It is advisable to store and serve between 14 and 16 degrees Celsius.
Bodegas Valdubón is located on the outskirts of Milagros, next to the Riaza River, which flows down from the Sierra de Ayllón to its confluence with the Duero at the bottom of the valley. Below you can see the town of Aranda de Duero, in the heart of the DO Ribera del Duero. Its vineyards are located on lands where it was already cultivated more than 2,000 years ago. The climate is Mediterranean-continental, characterized by cold, very long winters, and dry, hot summers.
In La Ribera they manage 155 hectares distributed in different municipal areas, such as Milagros, Pardilla, Fuentelcesped, Vadocondes, Aldehornos, Anguix and Pedrosa. The expression of Tempranillo is completed in its wines with a touch of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon.
For its part, in Rueda they make wines with Verdejo and Sauvignon Blanc grape varieties in the Castelo de Medina family winery. In their Valdubón facilities they have steel tanks of 25,000 and 45,000 liters and a microvinification area with small volume tanks that allow them to “get the full potential out of the grapes.”
They have a park with 1,000 American and French oak barrels. The facilities are completed with their own treatment plant, as well as a solar panel installation (500 120-watt panels) that generates 40% of the energy consumed in the production process. These facilities, they say, “are two fundamental pillars to make Valdubón a sustainable winery.”
In 1990 they landed in the DO Calificación Rioja (Solar Viejo /Orube), in 1997 in the DO Ribera del Duero and, later, they entered the DO Rías Baixas by acquiring Vionta. Finally they invested in a winery and vineyards in Gualtallary (Finca Ferrer), in Argentina. In the DO Ribera del Duero they have also opened up to wine tourism, offering wine tastings harmonized with tapas or tailored events.
Among the experiences they propose, it is worth highlighting experiencing the grape harvest, team buildings, blind tastings or cycling between vineyards. At the same time, they offer spaces to organize business meetings, product presentations or family celebrations.
