Winemaker Notes

20 months in 60% American Oak / 40% French Oak

Imperial is one of the renowned references in the entire history of Spanish winemaking. It is a true classic in Rioja and was first bottled in the 1920s. Its name was originally adopted after a special bottling for the English market in a bottle called ""Pinta Imperial"" or ""Imperial Pint"" (an Imperial pint, half a liter approximately). The grapes to make Imperial have always come from our own 28 hectares of vineyards in Villalba (Rioja Alta), and selected vineyards in the nearby communes of Briones and Montalvo, where our vines average age is kept over 20 years to secure quality. The Imperial cellar is a truly independent winery inside the original CVNE winery. This cellar allows for a fully traditional winemaking process subject to the strictest quality controls. The cellar is composed of french oak vats for fermentation of different capacities, in order to separate individual plots and follow up independent terroirs. The aging in oak vats takes place in the Eiffel Cellar which dates back to 1909. Vintage after vintage, Imperial´s style is consistent: elegant, balanced, and delicate. And without question, meant for ageing. The wines’ high acidity allows this to happen. And the lengthy barrel aging prepares the wine for evolution through the decades it can spend in bottle. Brick red deep cov­ered. Clean, com­plex and with a good in­ten­si­ty on the nose. Red fruit aro­mas well con­joined with those of the ag­ing. Bal­sam, spices (pep­per), to­bac­co and leather. Well struc­tured, tasty, large, soft but with char­ac­ter and a good har­mo­ny in its fla­vors.

Winery Notes

Familia Escudero is a family-owned and operated winery that has been producing exceptional wines for over 160 years. The winery's history dates back to the late 1800s when Don Victoriano Escudero started making wine in the region.

Familia Escudero strongly commits to sustainable viticulture and uses organic farming practices to create premium wines. The winery's vineyards are located in the Rioja Baja sub-region, where the climate and soil create the ideal conditions for growing high-quality grapes.

The winery offers a wide range of exceptional wines, from young red wines to aged Reserva wines. Its flagship wine is the Gran Reserva, which is aged for more than three years in oak barrels before being bottled and released. Other notable wines from Familia Escudero include the Crianza, Reserva, and Autor wines.