Rioja fine wine market
(Image credit: Credit Unknown)

Rioja’s high points in a sedate market

Last year was tough for the fine wine market. The Liv-ex 1000 index, one barometer of secondary market prices, fell 14.9% in 12 months to 31 January, although it was still up by nearly 12% in five years.

Trading has been subdued; however, UK merchant Goedhuis & Co reported consumer interest in the release of Marqués de Murrieta’s highly regarded Castillo Ygay Gran Reserva Especial 2012 at the end of 2023. ‘Despite current conditions, we did see some clients returning to purchase the 2012 release,’ said Goedhuis buyer Nathaniel Frankland.

He pointed out that it’s a strong brand with a loyal following, and that the next vintage (2016) won’t arrive for a few years. There was also some interest in lower riced back vintages, he added.

Telmo Rodríguez’s Yjar continues to be a Rioja name to watch. Its third vintage, Yjar 2019 (99pts Decanter), debuted at £306 (3x75cl in bond) in September 2023, following its release via La Place de Bordeaux.

Some top Riojas are still well under £100 a bottle, however. For example, Muga’s Prado Enea Gran Reserva 2016 was released in November 2023 priced at £315 (per 6x75cl in bond, Bordeaux Index).

Releases in 2024 include R López de Heredia’s 2004 Viña Tondonia Gran Reservas (red and white) – due to be available in most markets from May. US distributor SAWM Imports, meanwhile, has taken on Bodega Contador and is set to receive Contador 2022 in September 2024.

Top-traded Rioja wines on Liv-Ex

Rioja continues to be a relatively minor player on the fine wine secondary market.

Robbie Stevens, head of broking at Liv-ex, a global marketplace for the trade, said in late 2023 that Spain constituted about 0.91% of trades by value on Liv-ex year-to-date, versus 0.69% in 2022. Rioja wineries’ strategy of releasing vintages when ready to drink could play to the current market’s strengths. ‘People are, in general, looking for something they can drink now – we’re seeing that across all regions,’ said Stevens.

Yet, only La Rioja Alta’s 904 Gran Reserva 2004 stopped wines from Ribera del Duero from taking every slot in the 10 most-traded Spanish wines by value on Liv-ex in 2023.

More Riojas featured in Liv-ex’s top-traded Spanish wines by volume, however, led by R López de Heredia’s Viña Tondonia Tinto Reserva 2010.

Top-traded Spanish wine by volume, 2023:

  • Dominio de Pingus, Flor de Pingus, Ribera del Duero 2020
  • R López de Heredia, Viña Tondonia Tinto Reserva, Rioja 2010
  • CVNE, Viña Real Gran Reserva Especial, Rioja 2015
  • La Rioja Alta, 904 Gran Reserva, Rioja 2004
  • R López de Heredia, Viña Tondonia Tinto Reserva, Rioja 2011
  • La Rioja Alta, 904 Gran Reserva, Rioja 2011
  • Vega Sicilia, Valbuena 50 , Ribera del Duero 2017
  • La Rioja Alta, 904 Gran Reserva Selección Especial, Rioja 2015
  • Dominio de Pingus, Flor de Pingus, Ribera del Duero 2019
  • Muga, Prado Enea Gran Reserva, Rioja 2015

Auction snapshot: Rioja aficionados love old vintages

Legendary Rioja still tempts auction buyers, when sighted. ‘I think there’s a small group of collectors, and particularly when it comes to old Riojas, who are aficionados,’ said Richard Harvey MW, long-standing international director of fine and rare wines at auction house Bonhams, who changed role to become chairman of the department in early 2024.

He highlighted reservas and gran reservas from about half-a-dozen top producers, including R López de Heredia (Viña Tondonia), La Rioja Alta and Marqués de Murrieta (Castillo Ygay).

‘I suppose you could call them the “premiers crus classés” of Rioja, and obviously older vintages are hard to come by,’ he admitted.

Harvey doesn’t see Rioja as a region for investment, however – even if prices do have the potential to rise over the very long term. ‘It’s a wine people buy for pleasure,’ he explained, likening it to collector interest in Madeira.

There is also niche demand for top white Rioja. ‘There are people who love that particular style of wine,’ said Harvey. ‘But, of course, old white Rioja is very much an acquired taste.’

Legendary Rioja at auction in 2023:

Bonhams (London)

  • R López de Heredia, Viña Tondonia Blanco Gran Reserva 1957 (5x75cl) £1,488 (high estimate £750), November 2023
  • R López de Heredia, Viña Tondonia Blanco Gran Reserva 1964 (6x75cl) £1,240 (high estimate £600), November 2023
  • R López de Heredia, Viña Tondonia Gran Reserva 1961 (5x75cl) £1,612 (high estimate £900), November 2023

Hart Davis Hart (US)

  • Marqués de Murrieta, Castillo Ygay Gran Reserva Especial 1942 (2x75cl) $5,377.50 (hammer price $4,500 / high estimate $1,800), September 2023
  • Marqués de Murrieta, Castillo Ygay Blanco Gran Reserva Especial 1986 (3x75cl) $4,182.50 (hammer price $3,500 / high estimate $4,200), December 2023

Final sale prices include buyer’s premium

Price snapshot: Mixed signals

Marqués de Murrieta, Castillo Ygay Gran Reserva Especial 2010 – £1,854

A star of recent years, this was down 7% over 12 months, but still up more than 70% since release. For context, Liv-ex’s market price for the current-release 2012 vintage was £2,410.

La Rioja Alta, 904 Gran Reserva 2004 – £600

Up 11% in one year and 33% in five years, but a non-mover in the last six months.

La Rioja Alta, 890 Gran Reserva 2010 – £1,450

It’s still early days for this top vintage of 890. The price has fluctuated – down 10% in 12 months at the time of writing.

Source: Liv-Ex market price (12 x 75cL in bond ) to 02/02/2024

Chris Mercer
Chris Mercer

Chris Mercer is a Bristol-based freelance editor and journalist who spent nearly four years as digital editor of Decanter.com, having previously been Decanter’s news editor across online and print.

He has written about, and reported on, the wine and food sectors for more than 10 years for both consumer and trade media.

Chris first became interested in the wine world while living in Languedoc-Roussillon after completing a journalism Masters in the UK. These days, his love of wine commonly tests his budgeting skills.

Beyond wine, Chris also has an MSc in food policy and has a particular interest in sustainability issues. He has also been a food judge at the UK’s Great Taste Awards.