Stevens Garnier is delighted to present a new range of wines from the celebrated Sonsierra estates in Rioja Alta.  The name Sonsierra means 'under the mountains', and the region's unique microclimate derives from the Cantabrian Mountain Range to the north and the river Ebro to the south, creating wide diurnal temperatures ideal for growing grapes.  A thousand-year-old history of winemaking and deep Miocene clayey-calcareous soils contribute to the quality of the wines, which have beautifully balanced acidity and excellent concentration of aromas and flavours.  Old vines are planted in hilly vineyards on terraces ranging from 420m in the lower Ebro area up to 770m in the foothills of the Sierra de Cantabria.

The Bodegas Sonsierra was founded in 1961, back in the years when wine production became the economic engine of La Rioja.  Today it is the second largest bottling co-operative in Rioja - an example of the coordination and collaboration of 160 expert winemakers - and equipped with the very latest technology.  A combination of tradition and modernity, and radical commitment to quality have placed Bodegas Sonsierra at the vanguard of Rioja's most innovative wineries.  The cornerstone of Bodegas Sonsierra’s philosophy consists of achieving the perfect balance between fruit and oak, giving the wines a modern style and unique personality within the framework of an easily recognizable Rioja identity.

The range comprises a single white - a crisp and fruity Viura.  The rest of the wines are made from the Tempranillo grape - Rosado, a youthful and fruity unoaked Red, Crianza, and Reservas. 

At the top of the range, stylishly packaged Pagos de la Sonsierra and Perfume de Sonsierra wines are the result of a groundbreaking new partnership with fashion designer David Delfin. The winemaker has got these wines bang-on.  With 560 hectares of fruit to choose from, he knew exactly where and when to find just the right fruit to match the concept behind the wines.

For the Pagos de la Sonsierra, a limited edition ‘medicine bottle’  and ‘pharmaceutical ‘outer carton suggest the  therapeutic values of the wine.  The shelves of Spanish and Portuguese Chemists are full of red and white-boxed elixirs and tinctures. This wine is intense - dark cherry and herbs, hinting at the medicinal - but also glossy, rich and concentrated.

Perfume de Sonsierra is intensely perfumed, floral and high toned - it out-Malbecs high altitude Malbec and that's no mean feat!  Delicious scent is a quality shared by both fine wine and designer  fragrance, and the packaging presents the wine as if it were an exclusive, haute couture perfume - in a limited edition heavy glass bottle with sumptuous presentation box.