Grupo La Rioja Alta S.A. expands distribution deal with Hallgarten

By Jo Gilbert

Published: 07 August, 2024

Wine importer Hallgarten & Novum Wines has broadened its distribution agreement with Grupo La Rioja Alta S.A, a “heavyweight” of the Rioja region.

Having first been appointed to represent the group in the UK on-trade in January 2023, this enhanced strategic partnership sees Hallgarten also take responsibility for distribution into the UK’s fine wine and independent retail sectors, including its sister company, Lay & Wheeler.

The distribution agreement covers all wineries in the group, including La Rioja Alta S.A., Torre de Oña (Rioja Alavesa), Lagar de Cervera (Rías Baixas) and Áster (Ribera del Duero), which total 920ha of estate-owned vineyards.

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Stéphane Desmarquest, export director at La Rioja Alta S.A. said: “We are thrilled to announce our global partnership with both Hallgarten & Novum Wines and Coterie Holdings, marking an essential new chapter for La Rioja Alta, S.A. This strategic partnership will continue to reinforce our distribution in the UK, making our brands available to a broader audience and further cementing our position as a leader in the premium Spanish category.”

Hallgarten’s portfolio director, Jim Wilson, added: “La Rioja Alta S.A. is one of the most widely recognised wine brands in the world and an undisputed heavyweight in the Rioja region. We are extremely proud to represent their entire portfolio of wines and share them with the UK’s retail sector, in addition to the hospitality industry.”

The Hallgarten team has how worked with the range for 18 months, distributing them across the UK’s hospitality sector.

Now “we are excited to maximise the opportunity we have. This step marks a pivotal moment in Hallgarten’s year of growth, as we look to drive the business forward in 2024,” Wilson said.

Combining tradition and state-of-the-art technology, La Rioja Alta S.A. is known for producing classically styled Reserva and Gran Reserva wines which undergo considerable cask-ageing.

The business was founded in 1890 in the old railway quarter of Haro by five families including the Aranas, the Ardanzas and the Alberdis (Each of these names now appear on the Reserva wines). The company gradually expanded and completed a new purpose-built winery in Labastida in 1996.

Oak is at the heart of the ageing process, with a team of in-house coopers producing their own barrels from wood imported from the US and air-dried on site in Haro. Traditional manual racking takes place by candlelight every six months, while the vines are sustainably farmed.

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