Bodegas Miguel Merino: “Updated Classic” Rioja from Briones
A Family Winery Built on Tradition and Reinvention
Rioja has no shortage of excellent producers, but few walk the line between honoring the past and reimagining the future as gracefully as Bodegas Miguel Merino. In recent years, they’ve been turning heads in the staunchly traditional region and are now well-known for their “updated classic” style, as they like to call it. They’re one of the most exciting wineries that we import directly.
Located in the historic Rioja Alta village of Briones, just south of the Ebro River, Bodegas Miguel Merino was founded by Miguel Merino Sr., who formerly worked for several large wine exporters in Spain. Having spent decades traveling the world promoting and selling Rioja, Miguel Merino was not only well-versed in the great wines of the region, but he was also exposed to other famous wines of the world and firmly believed that Rioja deserved a place at the table with the most prized wines. With that knowledge and inspiration, he founded his own Bodega in the mid 1990s to make Reserva and Gran Reserva Rioja. At first, he purchased grapes, specifically from old-vine parcels, seeking plots that had a clear Atlantic influenced. The first vintage Miguel Merino produced was the 1994, which was later released in 2000.
His son, Miguel Merino Jr., joined the business in his twenties, but as is often the case when family and work intersect, the transition was not always smooth. After a short time, he chose to leave the winery and gain experience elsewhere, studying enology and working for several years as a cellar master at Muga. At the age of 36, armed with both experience and perspective, Miguel Jr. rejoined his father. His wife Erika joined full-time as well, helping to manage the business and marketing side of the winery. The first vintage fully controlled by Miguel Jr. and Erika was 2017, and in the years since, they have continued to expand and improve the winery.
Today, Bodegas Miguel Merino owns 9 hectares of vineyards and rents another 5 hectares that they farm, all located in Briones. The oldest vines were planted in 1929, many in the 60’s and 70’s, and the younger ones planted in 2001. No herbicides or pesticides are used in the vineyards, and they are currently mid-way through their organic certification process. Erica and Miguel have also contributed many contemporary ideas to the traditional winery Miguel’s father set up, including bottling several single vineyard wines—once an absolute rarity in Rioja, which is traditionally known for blending—as well as the addition of a white Rioja, a single varietal Garnacha and a single varietal Mazuelo.
Sadly, Miguel Merino Sr. passed away in 2021, but the winery is in good hands with Miguel Jr., Erika and the tiny team they employ. Each vintage, the wines just seem to get better and better, and the critics agree, too. The winery’s portfolio is comprised of the first wines created by his father, still conforming to the traditional standards of the region and labeled as Reserva and Gran Reserva, as well as new wines named after the vineyards Miguel Jr. has singled out as the most distinctive.
What makes all the wines distinctive is their utter elegance and finesse. Today in Rioja, there are the wineries that are fiercely traditional, making wines just as they have been made for decades, and there are also wineries that sit on the other end of the spectrum, producing wines with an array of techniques borrowed from other parts of the world, often with a de-emphasis on both noticeable oak and any sort of extended aging. The wines of Miguel Merino feel like they have one foot firmly in the past and one foot in the present. Truly, they are updated expressions, honoring the traditional wines that formed the core of the winery Miguel Sr. founded, but also allowing new, thoughtful wines of the present to join the lineup, proving that the two styles can coexist. As a “grower winery focused on terroir,” as Miguel Jr. says, all their wines are delicate and subtle, capturing the essence of the region but through a thoroughly modern lens respectful of the terroir. More importantly, they are utterly delicious and not to be missed.
2022 Miguel Merino "Viñas Jóvenes" Rioja $21.99 The Viñas Jóvenes is Miguel Merino’s “village” wine, crafted from younger vines (between 10 and 25 years of age) and designed to show off the personality of the village of Briones where the winery is located. These are vines in training, in a sense, waiting to grow old enough to be included in the Reserva or Gran Reserva, yet in the interim produce readily accessible, highly enjoyable wines bursting with exuberant red fruit notes framed by a delicately savory quality. Made from 92% Tempranillo, with smaller amounts of Graciano and Garnacha, the wine ages for 12 months in second use barrels as well as 500L casks, to emphasize the youthful fruit and not cloak it in oak. Ready to drink now, with juicy fruit notes and lively acidity, this is hardly a trivial wine, however. Rather, it has a surprising amount of concentration for such a well-priced bottle, with a noticeable Miguel Merino thumbprint of elegance, finesse and restrained energy pulsing through the core of the wine, just like its older siblings.
2019 Miguel Merino Reserva Rioja $39.99 95DC 94TA 93WA 93VN
2019 Miguel Merino Reserva Rioja (1.5L) $89.99 Unlike most Rioja producers, Miguel Merino releases the Reserva and Gran Reserva from the same vintage simultaneously, making for a rare apples-to-apples comparison of how oak type and aging time shape a wine. The 2019 Reserva is made from mostly Tempranillo, with just a dash of Graciano, aged for two years in an interesting hybrid barrel of sorts: the staves are made from American oak and the heads are made from French oak, allowing the two flavor profiles to meld from the earliest stages of maturation. The barrels are 70% new, imparting a clear savory and dried herb component to the wine, along with dried tobacco, leather and toasted hazelnut. Now with over four years of bottle age, this Rioja is absolutely singing, with seamlessly integrated supple tannins and lovely, refreshing acidity. For me, this Rioja sits perfectly in the middle of a traditionally styled Rioja and one with more modern sensibilities—it seems to have one foot in the past honoring Miguel Sr. and one foot firmly in the present, showcasing the forward-thinking style of Miguel Jr. It’s clearly of the region, but it is a wonderfully elegant, light-footed version of a Rioja Reserva.
2019 Miguel Merino Gran Reserva Rioja $54.99 94WA 94VN 93TA
2019 Miguel Merino Gran Reserva Rioja (1.5L) $119.99 Released alongside the same vintage of the Reserva Rioja, the Miguel Merino Gran Reserva Rioja ages for three years (as opposed to two for the Reserva) in barrel. Made from mostly Tempranillo with a touch of Graciano, the wine spends its first two years in 100% new French oak barrels, and then it is racked into used French oak barrels for its third year, to allow for seamless integration of the toasty oak aromas. This sort of attention to detail is just what sets the Miguel Merino Riojas apart, this one included. The wine is both elegant and powerful, achieving a harmonious balance between its firm, well-built structure and the densely woven red and black fruit notes. As the minutes pass in the glass, the wine just seems to gain in complexity, further unveiling woodsy forest floor and moss aromas, along with subtle licorice and dried thyme. There is a fine balance between freshness and maturity, with vibrant acidity carrying the wine into a long, lingering finish. Muscular and delicate at the same time, this Gran Reserva is such a wonderful example of the finesse and understated beauty Rioja can achieve.
2022 Miguel Merino "La Loma" Rioja $64.99 96TA 94VN 93DC 93WA La Loma is a single vineyard planted in 1946 in the village of Briones. Just 1.4 hectares in size, this diminutive vineyard faces east and is comprised of three varieties, all trained in the traditional bush-vine system: Garnacha Blanca (which goes into the Miguel Merino Blanco Rioja), Garnacha and Tempranillo. It ages for 14 months in 500L used French oak barrels, to allow the character of the vineyard and old vines to shine through without excessive influence from new oak. Richly structured and grippy, this is a Rioja that will age for decades to come.
2022 Miguel Merino "La Insula" Garnacha Rioja $64.99 96TA 95VN 94WA La Insula is a tiny parcel planted with ungrafted, pre-phylloxera Garnacha. This vineyard has deep sandy soils, which prevents the vines from being affected by the vine louse, and the result is an opportunity to journey into the past to taste ancient Garnacha clones. Like the other single vineyard wines, the wine ages in neutral 500L oak casks for 14 months, so there is little oak influence in the wine. Some whole cluster inclusion during the fermentation enhances the red fruit character of the Garnacha. This is a supremely elegant, floral and delicate example of a Garnacha Rioja!
2022 Miguel Merino "Quinta Cruz" Mazuelo Rioja $43.99 96DC 96TA 94WA La Quinta Cruz is a single vineyard planted in 1986 on the southeast slope of a hill very close to the Ebro River. Only 1.2 hectares in size, the vineyard is comprised of 100% Mazuelo (Carignan), which is also what this wine is made of—highly unusual in Rioja, where Mazuelo is generally considered to be a minor blending grape prized for its high acidity and firm structure. The wine is aged in 500L used French oak barrels and concrete, so there is no overt influence from new oak. In a warm year like 2022, the Mazuelo has retained an impressive amount of freshness and vibrancy. A very unique and delicious exploration into the more unusual side of Rioja, this is one to snatch up while still available.
2023 Miguel Merino Blanco Rioja $39.99 96DC 94WA 94TA Miguel Merino’s Blanco Rioja is made from 60% Viura and 40% Garnacha Blanca sourced from three distinct vineyards. It ferments and ages for 10 months in 500L neutral casks, avoiding any significant impression of new oak. The focus here is on freshness, fruit-purity and a racy, refreshing mouthfeel driven by acidity and dense minerality. A delicate floral note lingers in the background, along with fresh lemon thyme. This is such a delicious, clean and thoroughly modern style of white Rioja, with just enough creaminess on the palate to make it an excellent food wine.