WINERY &
VINEYARDS
The altitude is a hallmark of most of our plots; we are located between 820 and 1,005 meters above sea level, which provides natural aeration, slowing down fungal attacks and significantly reducing their treatment needs.
Also, due to this altitude, our vineyard benefits from a marked temperature fluctuation between day and night, which favors slower and more controlled grape ripening. This process contributes to wines with higher acidity, greater aromatic complexity, and a significant phenolic content, characteristics that result in intense, elegant wines full of personality.
OUR VINEYARD IS A REFLECTION
OF THE LAND AND TRADITION.
At Bodegas Raíz de Guzmán, we cultivate our vineyards with a natural and environmentally friendly approach. We have a privileged ecosystem for sustainable cultivation that allows us to obtain grapes of exceptional quality, without relying on chemicals or herbicides, and preserving the purity of our soil.
High-altitude wines are fresh, with a lower alcohol content, good acidity, and great aromatic quality.
Each vineyard we work with is a reflection of the tradition and effort to keep the essence of this land alive, ensuring that each bottle tells a story of people and landscapes.
Nature and the passage of time have created a soil of exceptional characteristics, cultivating vines designed to produce the best fruit. At altitudes above 900 meters, the clays are mixed with abundant gravel, creating a unique terroir that imbues our wines with the authenticity and character of the Ribera del Duero landscape.
At Bodegas Raíz de Guzmán, we manage approximately 30 hectares of selected plots in towns such as Roa, Pardilla, Moradillo, and Peñaranda de Duero, where the altitude and rich soils create wines of great personality.
We have the trust of renowned winemakers, with whom we have developed a synergy and a very close personal relationship over the years. They are our winemakers, but they are also part of the Bodegas Raíz family. We respect and admire them; without them, and their grapes, it wouldn't be the same.
“There’s nothing better than finishing a day of sampling in one of their underground cellars, slicing bread, chorizo, and raising a glass of wine.”
“We're a small winery, we work hard and are involved, we love our product and believe in it.”
“We're nonconformists, in the most positive sense of the word, and that's the key to success. At Raíz, we always aspire to more.”
Cayetana Santos
Owner of Bodegas Raíz de Guzmán
y Quesos Páramo de Guzmán.
Manual Harvest:
The demand for quality
in every bunch.
At Bodegas Raiz, each harvest is a carefully controlled process, carried out with the utmost respect for the grapes and the environment. Harvesting always takes place during the day, under optimal temperature and light conditions, allowing the fruit to be picked at its peak ripeness.
To ensure the integrity of each bunch, harvesting is done manually, using 15 kg crates. This traditional method not only allows for grape-by-grape selection with the utmost care, but also ensures that the fruit is not damaged or pressured during transport. The crates are quickly moved to the winery, where the Double Selection process begins immediately to avoid any risk of oxidation that could affect the freshness and quality of the must.
The Art of Production: Terroir is all very well, but good production is essential.
Once alcoholic fermentation has taken place, parameters such as density, temperature, fermentation kinetics, etc. must be controlled...
And if there is something strange... Act
Once fermentation is complete, the wine will either be bottled as a young wine or enter the aging phase, where its task is to continue evolving while respecting its origins.
And the grapes arrive at the winery, and the wine is made alone... I wish it were that way, but it isn't!!
The grapes arrive, and we need to make sure they don't overheat, thus avoiding oxidation and loss of aromas. To achieve this, we perform a cold maceration. The day before receiving the grapes, the tanks are cooled to about 10 degrees Celsius (50 degrees Fahrenheit) so that when they arrive, they don't start fermenting and we can stabilize the primary aromas, the fruity aromas we love so much.
The wines are aged in Bordeaux (225 liters) and Burgundy (228 liters) barrels. The barrel aging time ranges from 9 months for our Oak to 36 months for Raíz de Cayetana.
We also work with 500-liter barrels, which we use for complete vinification, as is the case with Raíz de Cayetana, or as a final refinement for some batches.
