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Bodegas Ondarre gives you another way to explore Rioja. Rather than thinking only in terms of Crianza, Reserva or Gran Reserva, you can begin with a producer whose identity is closely connected to the vineyards around the town of Viana.
That sense of place runs through Ondarre's approach. Different soils, vineyard sites and grape varieties give the winery opportunities to make different expressions of Rioja, while careful selection and winemaking provide a recognisable thread through the range.
You don't need to understand all of that before buying an Ondarre wine. But if you are curious about why this producer is worth exploring, it gives us a useful place to start.
Bodegas Ondarre was founded in 1985 in Viana, in Rioja Oriental, with the intention of making wines that reflect the particular character of the area. The winery's philosophy places considerable importance on the relationship between grape variety and the vineyards from which the fruit comes.
Viana provides plenty for a winemaker to work with. Ondarre's vineyards include small, older plots on slopes rising towards the Sierra de Codés, with south-facing sites at more than 500 metres and a notably diverse collection of soils. The winery selects low-yielding bush vines, including vines more than 30 years old, and carries out careful selection of the grapes.
The important point for the wine drinker isn't simply that these differences exist. It's that Ondarre uses them to make wines with different personalities rather than trying to make every wine taste like a variation of the same house style.
There isn't one single "Ondarre taste". The producer works with different grape varieties, vineyard selections, winemaking methods and approaches to ageing, allowing the character of Viana to be expressed in different ways.
That breadth is important. Ondarre can work within Rioja's familiar styles and classifications while also exploring individual grape varieties, particular vineyards and wines where origin becomes a more prominent part of the story.
For the customer, this means an interest in Ondarre doesn't depend on liking one particular style of Rioja. You might first encounter the producer through a familiar Rioja style, a particular grape or something more individual. These are different routes into the same producer rather than reasons to exclude one another.
If the idea of a Rioja producer strongly connected to one place appeals to you, Ondarre is certainly worth exploring. The range provides different expressions of that approach rather than asking you to commit to one particular style of wine.
And you don't need to learn more about the winery before taking the next step. Once you've decided that Ondarre sounds interesting, the question changes from "Why should I consider this producer?" to "Which Ondarre wine should I choose?"
That's the job of our Bodegas Ondarre wine collection, where you can see the Ondarre wines we currently stock and decide which part of the range best suits what you're looking for.
If you're already ready to explore the wines, you can do that now. If you'd like to understand why Viana matters to Ondarre, how the producer approaches its vineyards and how this fits into the wider story of Rioja, there's more to discover below.
Viana lies in Rioja Oriental, but simply knowing the Rioja sub-region doesn't tell the whole story. Ondarre's identity is much more closely tied to the particular vineyards surrounding the town and the slopes rising towards the Sierra de Codés.
The producer highlights the diversity of soils found here, together with altitude, vineyard orientation, older vines and relatively low yields. These differences help explain why Ondarre talks so strongly about terroir: the winery sees the characteristics of Viana as something to preserve and express rather than simply the place from which its grapes happen to come.
That also makes Ondarre a useful reminder that Rioja Oriental isn't one uniform wine style. If you'd like to explore the wider area rather than one producer, you can explore our Rioja Oriental wines.
Ondarre describes its philosophy as seeking to express each grape variety together with the characteristics contributed by its place of origin. That distinction matters because grape and place aren't competing explanations of a wine: they can work together.
The winery selects particular vineyard plots around Viana and places considerable emphasis on the quality of the fruit entering the winery. Selected vineyards are harvested by hand, with further grape selection before vinification.
This helps explain why grape variety can be particularly interesting within the Ondarre range. A customer can become interested in the character of a grape such as Tempranillo, Graciano or Mazuelo without leaving behind the producer's wider interest in Viana and origin.
If it's the grape itself that has caught your attention, that's a different question from understanding Ondarre. Our Rioja grape guides and collections can help you explore those varieties more widely rather than limiting the choice to a single producer.
Ondarre also demonstrates why Rioja doesn't have to be understood through a choice between "traditional" and "modern". The producer can make wines within Rioja's established ageing classifications while simultaneously placing considerable emphasis on vineyard origin, individual varieties and particular sites.
Rioja itself increasingly gives producers ways of communicating origin alongside the familiar ageing terms. Some Ondarre wines, for example, have been identified as Vinos de Municipio, recognising their connection with Viana. The producer has also explored more specific vineyard expressions.
None of this makes Crianza, Reserva or Gran Reserva less useful. They answer one set of questions about a Rioja; origin, grape and producer approach can answer others.
If you're uncertain about the familiar classifications, our Crianza vs Reserva vs Gran Reserva guide explains what they mean and how they can help you choose. If those classifications aren't the way you naturally think about wine, our Rioja Beyond the Ageing Ladder guide explores some of the other ways Rioja can be understood.
Bodegas Ondarre was founded in Viana in 1985 by the Limousin Ucin family as part of Grupo Bodegas Olarra. The project was created specifically to explore the character of Viana and its vineyards, rather than simply reproducing the approach of the group's existing Rioja winery.
The Ondarre name itself comes from the family's country house in Azpeitia, dating from 1450. But the identity of the winery that bears the name is firmly connected to Viana: its vineyards, its varied soils and the different expressions those vineyards can produce.
That makes the history relevant rather than simply biographical. The emphasis on place that Ondarre communicates today isn't a recent story added to an established range; it was part of the reason the winery was created.
We've stocked Ondarre wines for many years because they are remarkably dependable. Whether we're tasting a particular grape variety or one of Rioja's established styles, the wines consistently deliver the character we expect them to deliver.
That consistency matters when we're recommending wine. A customer returning to an Ondarre wine can reasonably expect the same character and quality that brought them back to it in the first place — and our customers clearly agree. Ondarre is the most frequently repurchased wine range we sell.
If Ondarre now sounds like a producer you'd like to explore, view our Bodegas Ondarre wines. That's where the choice moves from understanding the producer to deciding which of its wines best suits you.
If you're still deciding what sort of Rioja you're looking for, our Rioja Wine Guide – Which Rioja Is Right for You? is the better place to continue.
If you're interested in Ondarre but aren't sure where to start, get in touch with us. Tell us what you normally enjoy drinking or what you're looking for, and we'll be happy to help.