Founded in 2018, Ukan is Koldo Eguren’s personal vision of Rioja Alavesa wine. He belongs to the fifth generation of winemakers and the seventh generation of growers in the Eguren family.
The grandson of Victorino Eguren, co-founder of Bodegas Sierra Cantabria and later founder of Eguren Ugarte, Koldo grew up immersed in the world of wine, although his early career took him in a different direction. After studying Business Administration, he launched several ventures in the audiovisual sector and spent several years in California working in film and advertising. That experience prompted him to appreciate Rioja’s vineyard heritage from afar and inspired the name Ukan, a Basque word meaning “to have”, referring to inherited knowledge and legacy.
After returning to the Basque Country in 2016, and following a brief period managing Bodegas Honorio Rubio, he decided to establish his own winery. In its early years, he worked alongside his cousin Eduardo Eguren, who at the time was developing his own project, Cuentaviñas, while also making wines at Ukan’s facilities in Laguardia. Since 2023, technical responsibility has rested with Burgos-born winemaker Béquer Prieto, who is also involved with Sabinares. Koldo, meanwhile, combines the management of Ukan with the gradual handover of responsibilities at his family’s hotel and restaurant business in Lanzarote.
Ukan’s philosophy is inspired by Bordeaux, with the range structured around a first wine and a second wine, later complemented by a white wine and an entry-level red. The estate currently farms around 16 hectares of vineyards, 10 owned and six leased, spread mainly across Laguardia, Páganos, Lapuebla de Labarca and Elciego, as well as the Larrazuri vineyard in Labastida, inherited by the family. All vineyards are cultivated without herbicides and with carefully controlled use of systemic treatments. Vinification is carried out parcel by parcel to gain a deeper understanding of each site. For now, Koldo has no plans to bottle single-vineyard wines, believing that Ukan’s identity lies precisely in the blending of different vineyards and that fragmenting the message would weaken the overall concept.
In the cellar, the oldest vineyards are fermented in wooden vats, while younger vines are vinified in concrete tanks. The project’s evolution is also reflected in its ageing regime. During the early years, 225-litre barrels dominated, but larger 400- and 500-litre formats now play an increasingly important role, as well as a more flexible approach to oak. Since the first vintage, carbonic maceration has also been used to fine-tune tannin texture, particularly in the second wine, Senderos de Ukan, and occasionally in Ukan itself, although it never accounts for more than 10% of the final blend.
The wines
The most accessible wine in the range is Naku (17,000 bottles for the Spanish market, €15, plus 3,000 magnums at €26), a red from young Tempranillo vineyards in Laguardia, Elciego, Lapuebla de Labarca, Elvillar and Labastida. Part of the wine is produced using traditional carbonic maceration, while the blend as a whole ferments in concrete tanks. Malolactic fermentation and ageing take place in concrete and used French oak barrels. The result is a juicy, supple and crunchy red designed for immediate enjoyment.
Senderos de Ukan (19,000 bottles, €22) is also sourced from selected Tempranillo vineyards across several villages in Rioja Alavesa. It ferments in concrete and is aged for 12 months in second- and third-use French oak barrels. The winemaking approach seeks to preserve fruit expression while maintaining freshness and structural definition.
Above it sits Ukan (15,000 bottles, €42), the estate’s first wine. It comes from three old vineyards in Laguardia with considerable clonal diversity and naturally low yields. Each parcel is vinified separately in 2,000-litre open-top vats using destemmed fruit. After six months in 225-litre barrels, the wines are blended, producing a wine with dark fruit, spicy notes and notable concentration, with the structure and depth required for long-term ageing.
The latest addition to the range is Ukan Blanco (2,500 bottles, €42). First produced in 2023 and released in 2026, it is made from Viura grown in the headlands of the estate’s own vineyards. Fermentation and ageing take place over the course of a year in a combination of new barrels and concrete eggs. The wine is fermented with selected yeasts and remains on its lees, with bâtonnage carried out every two weeks. The resulting white combines freshness, white-fruit and spice aromas, generous texture on the palate and well-integrated oak, supported by an attractive bitter finish.
The winery is not currently open to visitors.