Rioja Archives - Wine Country Getaways

Tempranillo Blanco is blended in this Vivanco white wine

How Tempranillo Blanco came to be

We all know about the grand grape of Spain, Tempranillo. The Rioja, Ribera Del Duero, Toro, and other wine regions of Spain produce beautiful red wines from this grape. In our previous post we explained the origin of Tempranillo and its qualities. When we met with Rafael Vivanco at his demonstration vineyard garden we learned about Tempranillo Blanco, a very new grape found only in the Rioja wine region.

Tempranillo Blanco is a grape that mutated naturally. This happened in 1995 in the village of Murillo near Logrono, Spain. An old wine grower discovered in the middle of his vineyard one shoot on his Tempranillo vine yielding white clusters of grapes. He immediately called the University of Rioja Enology Center. The university began experimentations and determined this was a natural mutation resulting in a change in the Tempranillo grape to its color and to the size of the berry. In 2008 the grape was recognized officially by the government of Spain as Tempranillo Blanco. Immediately following the authorization of Tempranillo Blanco, Rafael planted vines and currently has 12 hectares of Tempranillo Blanco.

Listen as Rafael explains how he currently uses Tempranillo Blanco and what he may do in the future.

The Bodegas Dinastia Vivanco is located in the town of Briones, Spain. The winery is unique in that it has, in addition to its winemaking cellars, the demonstration garden, a fabulous restaurant, and what is regarded as the greatest wine museum in the world. For the wine country traveler to Spain, this winery is a “must visit.”

The village of Briones

Rafael Vivanco on the Tempranillo grape

At the recent Digital Communications Conference held in Logrono, Spain, viticulturist and winemaker Rafael Vivanco addressed the conference attendees as we stood in his winery’s demonstration vineyard garden. Rafael and his brother Santiago are the third generation family members to run the historic Bodega Dinastia Vivanco. This Bodega is not only known for its outstanding wines but it has, what most wine experts agree, the greatest wine museum in the world. We moved among the grape varietals in the garden listening to Rafael speak about the most important grapes grown in the Rioja wine region. First up was Tempranillo, the most well-known and most-planted grape in Rioja. In this short slide video featuring Rafael Vivanco, he explains the origin of the Tempranillo grape, how it grows in the three areas of Rioja, and most importantly why this grape does so well in this region.