La Rioja Alta is one of the greatest producers in Spain’s flagship region. Founded in the 1890s the winery stands alongside fellow Rioja legends; Lopez de Heredia and Marqués de Riscal, as "the benchmarks for traditionally produced Rioja" (Wine Advocate) that have defined the world’s lofty expectations of fine Spanish wine and come in at absurdly affordable prices for their age and quality.

The new release, and just the second ever vintage of this new cuvée, La Rioja Alta Viña Arana Gran Reserva 2014 is referred to as the 'Junior 904 Gran Reserva'. The debut 2012 vintage scored a fantastic 97 points from Decanter, and though yet to be scored the 2014 is sure to set the bar higher.

Viña Arana 2014 is the only La Rioja Alta Gran Reserva of the vintage. All the fruit that would normally make up the iconic 904 and 890 Gran Reservas has gone into the Arana in 2014, meaning this is their only Gran Reserva release in 2014.

Arana is a blend of 94% Tempranillo from 40-year-old vines and 6% Graciano, vilified and aged separately for three years. Graciano gives aromatic intensity and freshness to carry the structure and elegance of Tempranillo for long bottle aging. The 2014 vintage was characterised by a cool growing season that produced "fresh, savory wines" (Wine Spectator).

Rioja Alta's winemaker Julio Saenz describes 2014 Arana as "lively... vibrant and well-balanced... with that great complexity and elegance typical of this style of Rioja wines". Wine Advocate says "quite simply, these are some of the finest Riojas that can grace your cellar: complex, refined, classic but without compromising fruit intensity". It is phenomenal value for age-worthy Rioja from one of the best producers in the region.