Enotria boosts portfolio with premium Rioja brands

UK on-trade supplier Enotria&Coe has boosted its Rioja portfolio with the addition of major premium brands, Ramón Bilbao and Sierra Cantabria.

Ramón Bilbao’s new vineyards in Monte Yerga

The on-trade specialist said the additions had reinvigorated its Rioja portfolio, and offered a “hugely exciting opportunity” for the category.

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“We hope to help build the category, particularly at the premium level where these brands really deliver and where the consumer is shopping,” he said. “We are excited to offer customers a Rioja portfolio that adds further quality and gravitas to our already impressive Spanish range.” CEO Troy Christensen described both brands as a “great fit” for Enotria&Coe, which would enable it to champion the “exciting” Rioja category. Spain, he said was making “real strides through innovation and product quality” but was only the sixth largest origin of wine in the UK.

Enotria&Coe Buyer Harriet Kininmonth said sourcing a new range from such a notable region was “every buyer’s dream”, and an exciting opportunity to put together a range that “over-delivers at every level”

Robert Eastham, wine & spirits director West and North Europe of Ramon Bilbao’s parent company, ZAMORA International said the new partnership would extend Ramón Bilbao’s coverage to all channels of Great Britain’s market, with Enotria working with Ramón Bilbao’s UK & Ireland Manager Kirsty Loftus to take the portfolio into the UK off- and on-trade.

“Enotria&Coe’s enviable reputation, broad expertise and brand-building capability in both the on and off trades will help us on to the next stage of our journey – to become a leading premium Rioja brand in the UK,” Eastham said.

The range comprises the company’s ‘classic’ trio of Crianza, Reserva and Gran Reserva, the Viñedos Altura and Rueda white ranges, the Edición Limitada and Mirto single vineyard blends, and the newly-launched Lalomba Rosado. This is the first release from the “dream parcel” of vines in the Yerga Mountain range in Rioja Baja (pictured above), which was purchased by Ramón Bilbao in 2015.

Carlos Caraballo, global sales director at Sierra Cantabria added that the company had wanted to develop the UK on-trade for a long time. “We’re looking forward to embarking on this journey with Enotria&Coe and developing a long-awaited presence in the UK on trade. With their focus on premium channels, we’re in a great position to bring our hand-crafted portfolio to market,” he said.