Las Pisadas 2016 (DOCa Rioja), from La Carbonera winery, has achieved a gold medal and 95 points at the prestigious international wine competition the Decanter World Wine Awards. This is the second vintage of this 100% Tempranillo wine, which comes from traditional vineyards in Labastida, the historical wine-producing town in the heart of Rioja Alavesa.
The jury, comprising over 100 industry professionals, including Masters of Wine and Master Sommeliers, highlighted the freshness, complexity, and balance of Las Pisadas 2016 in the tasting note published on the competition’s website: “Fresh and juicy with velvety tannins and a complex and layered profile. The finish is textbook quality.”
This wine is the result of painstaking work to select the parcels, characterize the wine type, and pursue the typicity. The vines are between 25 and 50 years old and are located in different areas within the municipality of Labastida, at various altitudes between 440 and 650 meters above sea level. The grapes are harvested by hand and vinified separately to choose only the best batches, with the aim of capturing the typicity of the Tempranillo from this area, prioritizing freshness and elegance over concentration.
Las Pisadas is the first exponent of Familia Torres’ new project in the DOCa Rioja, led by the enologist Julio Carreter and focused on wines that speak of their origin and landscape through vineyards owned by the family. The winery’s name refers to its most emblematic property, La Carbonera, one of the first vineyards to obtain the ‘Viñedo Singular’ certification granted by the Regulatory Council for the DOCa Rioja, an exclusive designation for single vineyard wines awarded after several strict requirements have been met. This marks a new phase for the Rioja wines from Familia Torres, which began its journey in Rioja Alavesa in 2006.
The Decanter World Wine Awards, organized by the British magazine Decanter, is considered the biggest international wine competition. Over 16,500 wines from 55 countries took part in the 17th edition, and a total of 178 platinum medals were awarded – among which 50 Best in Show were chosen – as well as 537 gold medals, of which 15 were given to Rioja wines.
