Who makes it
Bodegas Bilbaínas is a red-wine house in Haro, the commercial capital of Rioja Alta in northern Spain. The house has operated on this same ground since 1859, when French merchants crossed the Pyrenees seeking a place that oidium had not yet reached. The current entity dates to 1901, when Basque businessman Santiago Ugarte bought the property and turned it toward export. Three years later, Viña Pomal appeared on a bottle for the first time, and it has been the house's flagship label ever since.
Under Raventós Codorníu ownership, the house now distributes to more than 20 countries. Underground, the production cellars cover 3,400 square metres, among the largest historic cellars in Rioja, cut from the earth in the late nineteenth century when this district was building for scale. Winemaker Mayte Calvo de la Banda runs the cellar on the understanding that the work begins in the vineyard, plot by plot, before a single grape reaches the press.
Where it grows
Haro stands at the western end of Rioja Alta, the highest and coolest of the region's three principal zones. The town became a wine capital because of a railway line: the track connecting Haro to Bilbao and the Basque ports made Rioja wine exportable, and in the second half of the nineteenth century a cluster of bodegas grew up around the station to take advantage of it. That neighbourhood, known as the Station Quarter, still holds most of Haro's major historic houses, Bilbaínas among them.
Rioja Alta's cooler temperatures and higher elevation compared to Rioja Baja give its Tempranillo a firmer acidity and a longer ripening window, conditions that suit wine built for bottle ageing. The classical style that emerged here, Tempranillo aged in American oak and held in bottle before release, was designed as much for the journey as for the cellar.
How it is made
The cellar
Mayte Calvo de la Banda works the vineyards parcel by parcel, treating individual plots as distinct inputs rather than feeding a single blending programme. That approach shapes what arrives in the cellar: fruit from each parcel can be tracked separately before it reaches barrel.
In the cellar, American oak is the house's ageing wood. The Reserva spends 18 months in American oak barrels, with 20 percent of those casks new, then a minimum of two years in bottle before release. American oak contributes vanilla and sweet spice to the aromatic profile and a certain roundness to the mid-palate texture. The Gran Reserva adds a proportion of Graciano to the Tempranillo base and extends both the barrel and bottle time, which smooths the tannin further and allows the balsamic and toasty oak notes to integrate with the fruit.
What they make
The Viña Pomal range is built around Tempranillo in two main tiers. The Reserva is 100 percent Tempranillo at 14.5 percent alcohol, cherry red with a marked ruby rim, carrying floral and red fruit notes with sweet spice, vanilla, and a roasted edge that comes from the oak contact. The palate is full and fruit-forward, with the spice and vanilla continuing to integrate across the bottle ageing period. It is the most direct expression in the range.
The Gran Reserva introduces Graciano into the blend, adding a layer of firmer spice and aromatic complexity to the Tempranillo base. The colour deepens to garnet and cherry with light orange rim reflections, which mark the extended time in barrel and bottle. On the nose: liquorice, red fruit, and sweet spice from the Graciano, plus toasty and balsamic notes from the oak. The palate opens with a measured entry, builds across the mid-palate, and finishes long, with smooth and well-integrated tannins.
Wines to try
First bottle
Viña Pomal Reserva is the right first bottle. It is 100 percent Tempranillo, 18 months in American oak, and a minimum of two years in bottle before release, so by the time it reaches a table the fruit and wood have had time to settle into each other. The colour is deep cherry with a ruby rim. On the nose: red fruit, florals, vanilla, and sweet spice. In the mouth it is full-bodied but not heavy, with the vanilla and spice carrying through a rounded mid-palate to a clean finish. It gives a clear picture of what Haro's classic Tempranillo style produces and what American oak ageing adds to it.