The Bodegas Faustino vineyard is located in

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

within the wine-producing region of Rioja, in the province of Alava in the Basque Country, but only 5 km (3 miles) from Logrono.

History

The Bodegas Faustino vineyard was established in 1861 by Eleuterio Martinez Arzok when he purchased the palace and vineyards of the Marques del Pierto. The objective was to make wine and sell it in bulk and over following years it steadily grew in size and quality. In 1930 Faustino Martinez Perez de Albeniz took over and was the first to bottle his wine within the region of Rioja. The names of the wines produced reflected the vineyard of origin. For example: Campillo, Parrita, Famar, and Santana. However this was soon abandoned, only to return 60 years later after the company introduced some single-vineyard wines. Then in 1957, Julio Faustino Martinez (Third generation) became head of the company and launched Faustino as an international brand, which today is sold in as many as 47 countries.

Vineyards

The vineyards of Bodegas Faustino are located in Logrono, Laguardia, Mendavia and Oyon within the Spanish wine region of Rioja. This is about 650ha (1,600 acres). The main grapes used for the production of wines within the vineyards being the

Tempranillo Tempranillo (also known as Ull de Llebre, Cencibel, Tinto Fino and Tinta del Pais in Spain, Aragonez or Tinta Roriz in Portugal, and several other synonyms elsewhere) is a black grape variety widely grown to make full-bodied red wines in its ...

Mazuelo Carignan (also known as Mazuelo, Bovale Grande, Cariñena, Carinyena, Samsó, Carignane, and Carignano) is a red grape variety of Spanish origin that is more commonly found in French wine but is widely planted throughout the western Mediterra ...

Graciano Graciano is a Spanish red wine grape that is grown primarily in Rioja. The vine produces a low yield that are normally harvested in late October. The wine produced is characterized by its deep red color, strong aroma and ability to age wel ...

, and

Viura Macabeo, also called Viura or Macabeu (, ), is a white variety of wine grape. It is widely grown in the Rioja region of northeastern Spain, the Cava producing areas south of Barcelona, and the Languedoc-Roussillon region of France. S ...

grapes. These grape varietals are typical within the region. The winery can hold about 50,000 oak barrels and there is a permanent stock of some 9 million bottles.

Ownership

This vineyard is still a family-owned business and has expanded to become Grupo Faustino. Other than Faustino itself, the company includes Campillo and Marques de Vitoria also in Rioja; Valcarlos in

Navarra Navarre (; es, Navarra ; eu, Nafarroa ), officially the Chartered Community of Navarre ( es, Comunidad Foral de Navarra, links=no ; eu, Nafarroako Foru Komunitatea, links=no ), is a foral autonomous community and province in northern Spain, ...

; Condesa de Leganza in

La Mancha La Mancha () is a natural and historical region located in the Spanish provinces of Albacete, Cuenca, Ciudad Real, and Toledo. La Mancha is an arid but fertile plateau (610 m or 2000 ft) that stretches from the mountains of Toledo to the ...

; Bodegas Portia in

Ribera del Duero Ribera del Duero is a Spanish Denominación de Origen Protegida (DOP) located in the country's northern plateau and is one of eleven 'quality wine' regions within the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is also one of several recogni ...

; and Bodegas Victorianas, which offers varietal table wine from across Spain.

Wines

Bottles

The wines of Bodegas Faustino are presented usually in a frosted

Burgundy Burgundy (; french: link=no, Bourgogne ) is a historical territory and former administrative region and province of east-central France. The province was once home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th until the late 15th century. The c ...

style bottle with a label bearing the portrait of Nicolaes van Bambeeck, by

Rembrandt Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (, ; 15 July 1606 – 4 October 1669), usually simply known as Rembrandt, was a Dutch Golden Age painter, printmaker and draughtsman. An innovative and prolific master in three media, he is generally consid ...

. The Gran Reserva bottles also are wrapped with a thin, twisted-gold-wire mesh.

Styles of wine

From the very beginning the traditional style of wine production was the hallmark of wines produced by Bodegas Faustino. However thanks to pressure of market demand at the end of the 20th century this was abandoned, resulting in the production of a more modern range of wines such as Faustino Crianza Selección de Familia and Faustino de Autor, plus some limited editions like 9 Mil (so called since only 9,000 litres were produced) and Faustino Edición Especial, produced to celebrate Julio Faustino Martinez first vinification some 50 years previously. The range of wines include red, white, and rosado.

Classification of wines

Wines Wine is an alcoholic drink typically made from fermented grapes. Yeast consumes the sugar in the grapes and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Different varieties of grapes and strains of yeasts are m ...

produced at Bodegas Faustino vineyards are all called Faustino and are always followed by a Roman numeral: The top level of wines have the

Roman numeral Roman numerals are a numeral system that originated in ancient Rome and remained the usual way of writing numbers throughout Europe well into the Late Middle Ages. Numbers are written with combinations of letters from the Latin alphabet, eac ...

I. The middle range Faustinos have the Roman numeral V and the entry level Faustinos have the Roman numerals VII. Then lastly there is the crianza, reserva, or gran reserva. Cava is also produced, however this is usually associated with the wine growing region of

Catalonia Catalonia (; ca, Catalunya ; Aranese Occitan: ''Catalonha'' ; es, Cataluña ) is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy. Most of the territory (except the Val d'Aran) lies on the north ...

, although has been known to be produced in other wine regions such as Rioja. Such wines includes Cava Brut Reserva, Cava Extra Seco, Cava Semi Seco, and Cava Rosado (rose).

References

* * http://faustino.faustino.es/en/