Winemaking tradition in the Ochoa family dates back to the late 19th century, yet the current winery was established in the 1990s by Javier Ochoa after having led EVENA, the Navarra Viticulture and Oenology Research Institute, between 1981 and 1992. Today, it is managed by his daughters Adriana, who is in charge of winemaking, and Beatriz, who oversees sales.
Since 2000, the winery has relied entirely on its own grapes. Ochoa grows 145 hectares of organic vineyards. The vast majority are located south of Olite, in Traibuenas, in the Ribera Alta sub-region, close to the confluence of the Cidacos and Aragón rivers. The vineyards include El Bosque, Santa Cruz, El Secadero, La Pedrera and La Milla. Most of the soils consist of sand over a bed of clay, with varying amounts of pebbles on the surface (the more pebbles, the more suitable the grapes are for the Reserva category). Ferrous clay soils are also found in the area. The oldest vines are in Finca Montijo, the vineyard surrounding the winery on the outskirts of Olite.
Tempranillo is the dominant variety, followed by Garnacha, Graciano, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon, and the white varieties Muscat à Petit Grains, Viura, Viognier and Chardonnay. Part of the Garnacha vineyard has been regrafted with some 200 biotypes recovered by the Public University of Navarra and the Vitis Navarra nursery. Ochoa also pioneered the recovery of Muscat à Petit Grains, paving the way for a fresher style of sweet wines, closer in aroma and flavour to the distinctive character of the berry. With 25 hectares under vine, Ochoa owns 20% of the total area planted with this variety in the DO.
As this is a hot area, the grapes are harvested mechanically at night in order to preserve their aromas and freshness and to obtain cleaner musts from the start. Almost 1m kilos arrive at the winery, but only 500,000 bottles are produced. A small part is usually earmarked for R&D projects.
The wines are distributed in five different ranges: Calendas, the wines originally made by Javier Ochoa, those released by Adriana Ochoa and the family series.
Calendas (named after the first day of March) refers to the vine's flowering period, which marks the plant's awakening after winter. The brand is intended for young wines: a white made from Viura and Chardonnay, a Garnacha rosé and a Tempranillo red, which retails for around €6 in Spain.
Perhaps the most classic labels are those that bear Javier Ochoa's signature. Some of them were once real trendsetters, such as the rosé Ochoa Rosado de Lágrima (€6), a blend of Tempranillo and Garnacha. The reds include a single-vineyard Tempranillo Crianza (€10) and two blends of Tempranillo, Cabernet and Merlot, made as Reserva (€20) and Gran Reserva (€28). The excellent Ochoa sweet wine (€15), which spearheaded the recovery of Muscat à Petit Grains in Navarra, began life as a naturally sweet wine, but now has some alcohol added to add consistency; fortunately, it retains its traditional crisp, well-defined fruit quality.
Winemaker Adriana Ochoa was named after her grandfather Adriano, who managed to own 80 hectares of vines in the beautiful medieval village of Olite, even though he was unable to keep them in the family. Adriana has her own range of wines called 8A, all of them are limited productions of less than 10,000 bottles. Her aim is to make elegant wines, just as her grandfather did, and she tries to keep alcohol levels at 13% abv or less.
The range starts with La Foto de 1938 (€9, the label shows a photograph of her grandfather's group of friends taken in 1938), an original blend of equal parts Tempranillo, Merlot and Graciano with 10% Garnacha, aged for nine months in American and French oak. While 8A Milgracias (€14) shows Adriana's interpretation of Graciano - a fresh, herbal red with supple tannins - the Mirapies Selección Suelos (€16) mimics the Ochoa Reserva blend, but with grapes from stony soils. As for whites, she has come up with Uva Doble (€9), a single-varietal Viognier inspired by the time she spent at Yalumba winery in Australia, where she fell in love with the variety; and Moscato de Ochoa (€15), a splendid version of Moscato d'Asti using her beloved Muscat à Petit Grains, which perfectly fuses bubbles with sugar, resulting in a delicate, pleasant sip at just 5.5% abv.
Finally, the 'Familia' range consists of two red wines designed for cellaring and released with extended bottle ageing. Corazón de Finca Montijo (€45, less than 4,000 bottles) is a blend of 90% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon from the family's oldest vineyard in Olite, as a tribute to Javier Ochoa. Alma de Finca Secadero (€45, around 1,500 bottles) is a single-vineyard Tempranillo from the eponymous vineyard in Traibuenas, which has stony soils. It is a tribute to her mother, Mariví Alemán, after her strong commitment to the winery.
Half of the wines, mainly reds, are destined for export, while whites, rosés and sweet wines have a greater presence on the domestic market.
The winery is open for visitors. all year round. The standard tour includes a tasting of three wines, the winery's own olive oil and chocolate and local cheeses. A wine bar with an outdoor terrace is open during the summer. Visitors can enjoy young wines from the tap, wines by the glass or tasting flights, accompanied by live music.
The wines can be bought at the winery’s online shop
