Vineyards and winemaking
Rodiles is a five-hectare estate vineyard beside the Real Agrado winery, planted to Graciano on clay-limestone soils. The variety's small, thick-skinned berries need careful canopy management to protect them from sun scorch, while regular local winds provide the ventilation needed for slow, healthy ripening.
The 2007 fruit was fermented with native yeasts in wooden vats and matured for 16 months in French and American oak. A minimum of ten further years in bottle allowed Graciano's naturally high acidity and firm structure to settle into harmony. Only 2,128 bottles were made.
Tasting notes
Appearance
Deep garnet-ruby with a mature brick-red edge.
Nose
Blackberry preserve and dried raspberry mingle with cinnamon, roasted coffee, balsamic herbs and a savoury pastry note.
Palate
Complex and finely resolved, with dark berry fruit, bright acidity and tannins softened by long bottle ageing. Graciano's herbal, mineral character remains clear beneath cedar, spice and a gentle roasted note, carrying a long and elegant finish. Stand upright before opening, pour carefully and taste before decanting; variation between mature bottles is entirely natural.
Food pairing
Serve with braised hare, beef and ale suet pudding, slow-cooked oxtail, or grilled tuna with peppers. Its freshness also cuts neatly through a bowl of smoky butter beans with rosemary.
Background story
Rodiles is part of Colección Raíces, Real Agrado's range of very limited wines named after individual estate vineyards. Graciano is demanding and comparatively scarce in Rioja, but its acidity, perfume and longevity make it particularly compelling when a site suits it.
The extended bottle ageing is central to this 2007 release rather than an afterthought. Real Agrado held the wine for at least a decade after barrel maturation, releasing a fully evolved expression from a production of little more than two thousand bottles.
