CVNE: Compañía Vinícola del Norte de España
On Gingerguide's self-guided La Rioja Bodegas audio tour, CVNE: Compañía Vinícola del Norte de España is a stop worth about ~120 min. Stand in front of it, press play for a short narrated story, and put any follow-up question to the built-in AI guide.
- Type distillery
- Suggested visit ~120 min
- La Rioja Bodegas La Rioja Bodegas guide
About CVNE: Compañía Vinícola del Norte de España
Founded in 1879 in Haro, CVNE (pronounced 'Koob-nay') is one of the great historic houses of Rioja, occupying a magnificent wine compound in the Barrio de la Estación designed in part by Gustave Eiffel, producing the Imperial and Viña Real labels that are benchmarks of the classic Rioja style.
CVNE (Compañía Vinícola del Norte de España, the Wine Company of Northern Spain) was founded in 1879 by two brothers, Eusebio and Raimundo Real de Asúa, in Haro, Rioja. It is one of the founding members of the Barrio de la Estación (Railway Station Quarter), the cluster of prestigious bodegas built around Haro's railway station in the late 19th century, when the arrival of the railway made it economic to export wine from Haro to the rest of Spain and Europe. The main winery building at Haro includes a spectacular iron and glass warehouse designed by Gustave Eiffel (of Eiffel Tower fame) in the 1890s. CVNE produces wines under several labels: Imperial (the Reserva and Gran Reserva in the classic Rioja style), Viña Real (produced from grapes grown in the Rioja Alavesa subzone, with a slightly lighter style), Cune (the entry-level range), and Contino (a single-estate wine from a property in the Rioja Alavesa, considered one of the pioneers of the concept of single-estate Rioja wine).
Did you know? CVNE's Contino estate wine, produced from a single 62-hectare property in the Rioja Alavesa, was one of the first single-estate Rioja wines and is considered one of the pioneers of the quality revolution in Spanish wine that began in the 1970s and 1980s. The concept of 'single estate' or 'château' wines (vinifying only grapes from one property) was standard in Bordeaux but radical in Rioja, where the tradition had always been to blend grapes from multiple sources.
How much time do you need at CVNE: Compañía Vinícola del Norte de España?
Around ~120 min works well for CVNE: Compañía Vinícola del Norte de España — time to look properly and listen to its story on the spot. Linger if you like; nothing on a self-guided walk is on a clock.
Should you stop at CVNE: Compañía Vinícola del Norte de España?
Yes — CVNE: Compañía Vinícola del Norte de España made the cut as one of 12 places the Gingerguide team researched and narrated across La Rioja Bodegas. The story tells you why it is worth the stop, and the AI guide fills in anything you still wonder.
Nearby stops in La Rioja Bodegas
Hear the story of CVNE: Compañía Vinícola del Norte de España
Preview the La Rioja Bodegas tour free in the Gingerguide app.