INNERMOST RIOJA La Peña De Quel from the Terrace of Queirón
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INNERMOST RIOJA La Peña de Quel from the terrace of Queirón. Queirón was conceived as the wine-growing project of the Pérez Queirón Cuevas family in Quel, in the heart of the Cidacos river valley in the sub-region of Rioja Oriental. The vineyards are located between We are Rioja, we are Quel the Yerga and La Hez mountains in the heart of the Barrio de Bo- degas de Quel, an emblematic enclave of the 18th century that Wines for pleasure represents the historical vocation of this tiny village in Rioja with respect to wine, culture and of course its soul. Queirón embodies the philosophy of the Pérez Cuevas family, who has been focused on the world of wine for four generations. Queirón is the culmination of the dream of our father, Gabriel Pé- rez, winemaker and pioneering wine entrepreneur in this area of Rioja Oriental. This project has been over a decade in the making and has silently and secretly been brought to life by Gabriel. The project has restored historical areas and vineyards in the surroun- ding areas of Quel alongside the slopes that define the Sierra de Yerga mountain range. It is a terroir that bridges its relationship with viticulture to the period of the Middle Ages, as evidenced by various documents found in the Cathedral Chapter of Calahorra, dating back to 1327. Queirón is classicism and innovation at its best, and to this end will always remain committed to making wines with soul or otherwi- se, wines that define the place from which they were born. It is the heritage of our family, which consists of four generations of winegrowers with the backdrop of a terroir defined by its poor and scarcely productive soils. Our vineyards are in the foothills of the Sierra Yerga mountain range and maintain the tradition of one of the most little known and unique terroirs of the DOCa Rioja. 2 3 Garnacha vines in La Bartola in Quel, one of the vineyards of Queirón in the foothills of Mount Yerga. Our vineyards born in Quel, are located at the base of impressive, eventual wines from any unnecessary manipulation or mechanical historical sites marked by geological upheavals that date back some pumping that may affect the quality of the wine. 250 million years before our era. These unique geological shifts sys- The design of the Queirón winery was developed entirely from the tematically define the landscape as well as the characteristics of ingenuity of Gabriel Pérez and consists of two fundamental inspira- the soil where the grapes for Queirón are grown. These wines were tions. The first is of a technical nature, in which he has reinterpreted historically shaped in the caves of the Barrio de Bodegas and our the concept of the gravity-flow production methods of the ancient family is now dedicated to renewing them with this unique project wine caves of Quel and adapted them to fit a 21st century model. defined by its location and architecture. For this reason, the new winery literally sinks into the same hillside as the ancient caves and is attached directly to the old wineries of Historical significance of the 21st century the “Barrio de Bodegas”. Each level of this new gravity-flow system The new Queirón winery is located at the southern end of the “Ba- allows each stage of the winemaking process to be undertaken at rrio de Bodegas” in Quel (it maintains its same historic position in different levels, from the reception area and selection of the grapes the neighborhood in maintaining the original address of number in the upper part, gradually descending to the production areas, nine) which also borders the family’s first winemaking cellar. The de- barrel aging rooms and wine storage cellars. Gabriel, together with sign of the winery is unique and spans four levels, each of which his son Rubén, (the winery oenologist) have used architectural con- have been dug underground, much like many other traditional wine cepts typical this type of production in order to achieve a balance caves have been doing for centuries. It maintains the philosophy between the tradition of the area and its ancestors. The building is of gravity flow; with chutes on the top level that use the traditional fully integrated with its surroundings so as not to detract from the method of receiving grapes and on which the steps of winemaking traditional landscape of the winery, and it has been equipped with by gravity flow are based. This encourages all processes to be ca- all environmental resources available both for its own construction rried out with extreme care, protecting the grapes, musts and the as well as for its energy efficiency throughout the year. 4 5 Grape reception area at the winery. “Wine is a form of expression. Wine is our language“ Raquel Pérez Cuevas Patio del Hombre at Queirón. Artistic inspiration sculptor, born in Aldeanueva de Ebro. He is considered one of the The second creative inspiration for the winery is the artistic heritage most celebrated and complex artists from La Rioja that lived in the and style of Miguel Ángel Sáinz (a renowned painter and sculptor 20th century. The winery of Queirón worships wine and naturally fur- from La Rioja) with whom Gabriel maintained a deep friendship and ther celebrates these sensations of mystery, seclusion and beauty. with whom he undertook the creation of the Ontañón Winery in The winery has been designed meticulously by Gabriel Pérez. “It is the nineties. The Ontañón Museum in Logroño is a monument to my memory, the root of my family, it is surrounded by our vineyards, wine tourism in the DOCa of Rioja. Miguel Ángel Sáinz gave this in the Barrio de Bodegas de Quel, conceived with the same philo- important place ever more uniqueness by bringing together clas- sophy of our ancestors, with gravity as the axis of all design while sical mythology with the world of viticulture and wine. The winery respecting the environment and with the objective of making exce- further pays tribute to these two worlds in housing an authentic ex- llent wines. The wines from Quel are made with old vines as well as hibition of Miguel Ángel Sáinz works throughout. The winery mas- with the best selection of each one.“ terfully merges his works of art with oenology in all senses, from The construction of the Queirón winery embodies the philosophy of the design of furniture or stained glass windows, to the drawings of Ontañón Family. It is a work that has been a prolonged culmination barrel aging rooms as well as an underground cellar that includes an of a dream lasting for over a decade. A dream in which Gabriel authentic labyrinth with a sacred space for Persephone, one of the Pérez has been precisely configuring each moment and each sta- many sculptures you will find in the winery. ge with special care in order to achieve a building with a personal Gabriel Pérez has always wanted to pay tribute to Miguel Ángel and touch, uniquely “Queleño.” Unlike the traditional wineries that su- his friendship with him, which was marked by his unexpected pas- rround it, Queirón was designed to make the wines of “his dreams:” sing in 2002. Queirón is a further testament to the style of this great Prestigious, extremely high quality wines with soul. 6 7 «Harmony is the soul of a wine. Beauty and fragility are the concepts that move me» Gabriel Pérez Gabriel Pérez at the family cellar in the historic Barrio de Bodegas in Quel. The “Barrio de Bodegas” The great Quel playwright Bretón de los Herreros (1796-1873) wrote at varying depths. All of these wineries are linear, with a very simi- a wonderful description of his magical birthplace: “Such is the wine lar structure: grape collection vat is located at the entrance, next harvest collected in a vast plain behind the winery caves, that it has to basin intended for the extraction of wine after stomping on the been necessary to found a new town; and it is noteworthy that suffi- grapes. There was also a press and a lateral space for the concrete ce for the cult of the Savior a medium-sized church with the appen- tanks, which exist in two sizes: 90 and 200 cántaras (1 cántara 16 li- dix of a sad hermitage in the field, Bacchus had more temples there tres. ) The bottom of the caves was used as storage for both barrels than he had in Greece.” and bottles. With the evolution of the cultivation techniques and The “Barrio de Bodegas” in Quel that dates to the 18th century, is the transportation of the grapes, the wineries adapted the chimney a jewel. There are references in historical registries such as that of like chutes to run into each cellar from the upper part of the hill the Marqués de la Ensenada (1752) or that of Pascual Madoz (1851), where the neighborhood is located to each winery. The entirety of of more than 350 caves, or wineries, which make wine on a small the production was carried out by gravity flow and this system is the hill located on the southern bank of the Cidacos river. At present, one that the Pérez Cuevas family has also used in their new Queirón it has some 200 remaining such facilities that make up a complex winery, in celebrating the Queleña identity created by generations and diverse network of galleries and underground excavations - all of wine growers. 8 9 «There is a lot of passion, a lot of history and a lot of concentrated effort in one bottle of wine» Rubén Pérez Cuevas Elevation, terraces, gentle slopes The town of Quel hugs the Cidacos river, which descends from the rocky cliffs of the Isasa volcano in a succession of mountainous slo- pes and terraces that gradually open up to the greater Ebro river valley.