Vivanco has been selected, for the second year in a row, as one of the 50 most amazing wine experiences in the world, and is once again part of the exclusive Top 50 of World's Best Vineyards: a list of wineries in the five continents that any good wine lover and travel enthusiast should not miss, not only for its good wine, but also for its landscape, its architecture, its history, its gastronomic and cultural offer. In short, a ranking of wineries marked by diversity, which leaves an emotional impression on visitors.
Vivancoranked 41st, is one of only four Spanish wineries to have been distinguished by the jury in a year as special as 2020, marked by the Covid-19 crisis and its consequences around the world.
Top 50 of World's Best Vineyards
In this global context, which today is marked by the pandemic, the list of the Top 50 was announced on 13 July in a virtual event that brought together members from the five continents who belong to the Academy that awards these distinctions. The most frequent words spoken were "encouragement and strength" for all the winegrowers of the world. A speech marked by the hope of recovering normality. For the desire to open the doors of the wineries to visitors from all over the world, with all the precautions.
The gala, which in 2019 was held in London, was hosted this year by the producers of Sonoma County, California. This spectacular area is home to 500 wineries and more than 1,800 growers, including the famous vineyard of film director Francis Ford Coppola, who received a special award from the county. From the city of Santa Rosa, Karissa Krusse, president of the winemakers of this area, was in charge of unveiling, through the YouTube channel of the organisation, the list of the 50 Best Wineries in the World chosen by the World's Best Vineyards Academy. Its 500 members include wine experts, sommeliers and journalists specialising in luxury travel and wine tourism from all over the world. All the information can be found at www.worldsbestvineyards.com and the event on the YouTube channel.
Vivanco, a superstar attraction
The jury highlighted that "the impressive vineyard of Bodegas Vivanco has become one of the top wine tourism destinations not only in La Rioja, but in the whole of Spain". The experts praised "the modern, fruity white and red Riojas made by winemaker Rafael Vivanco", a praise also shared by "another superstar attraction: the Museum Vivanco of Wine Cultureone of the most impressive wine museums in the world".
With its more than 6,000 pieces, from centuries-old vases and wine presses to major works by contemporary artists such as Picasso, Juan Gris and Andy Warhol, the Top 50 list underlines the fact that the Museum Vivanco of Wine Culture has welcomed more than one million visitors since its opening in 2004. The jury recommends visiting the five permanent exhibition halls and, outside, not to be missed is the Garden of Bacchuswhere 222 varieties of grapes from all over the world can be found.
This wine tourism initiative has received the First Prize for the Best International Wine Tourism Project, an award granted in 2004 by The Global Network of Great Wine Capitalsin Melbourne, Australia. Likewise, in 2007, the World Tourism Organization also awarded it the Special Jury Prize in 2007 and in the same year the UNESCO declared it the best Museum of Wine Culture in the world. Awards that also include the Best Oenological Establishment in the II Wine Tourism Awards "Rutas del Vino de España". (ACEVIN) o the one awarded by the reference portal TripAdvisor.
Another aspect that makes Vivanco a special experience among the thousands of other wineries around the world is the Restaurant Vivancopanoramic views of the vineyards. The rating of World's Best Vineyards highlights traditional recipes and local produce in "a wonderfully creative cuisine": "The Restaurant Vivanco is an enviable place to sample the authentic flavours of Rioja cuisine", they say. To fully experience the Experience VivancoThe restaurant is an enviable place to try the authentic flavours of Riojan cuisine", they recommend a day trip for those who wish to integrate culture and gastronomy. "This will give them the opportunity to see the state-of-the-art underground winemaking facilities, with their impressive octagonal ageing room, as well as enjoy the Museum, the Restaurant and the tasting courses".
A stroll through wineries on five continents
This year's list of winners spans five continents and a total of 18 countries, with 17 new additions to the ranking. Some of the wineries are well known internationally, but the merit of this ranking is to include charming wineries that only experts know about. In this way, unique experiences are showcased and disseminated so that wine lovers from all over the world can fulfil their dream of experiencing them, in person, one day. France, with nine wineries, is the most represented country, followed by Chile, with seven. This year, wineries from Japan, Bulgaria and India have joined the event, as well as places ranging from Australia to Lebanon, from Uruguay to South Africa, passing through the main wine-producing countries in Europe.
The virtual gala kicked off with remarks by Brazilian Claudia Melo, one of the academics from World's Best Vineyardswhich is divided into geographical zones. Melo spoke of the impact of the pandemic on the world, the repercussions of the closure on the wineries' economy, but also encouraged, in this global and virtual event, "to reinvent ourselves, to be creative, to surprise". "We are braver and stronger than we think". Now that some of the wineries are reopening their facilities to visitors, with measures of caution and hope, academics from Germany, Bulgaria, India, the United States, Chile, Italy, Taiwan and Lebanon launched an appeal to the global wine family to "continue doing things well, as always, to take care of themselves and to continue working for everything that makes them unique and special".
Andrew Reed, Managing Director of Events and Exhibitions at William Reed Business Media, a global specialist media company and head of World's 50 Best VineyardsAndrew Reed, congratulated all the wineries present for their merits on this year's list, sympathised with the common issues, and encouraged the promotion of safe wine tourism. "Now that the world is reopening, let's make the virtual effort made by all the wineries to reach out to people during the pandemic real again". Reed recalled that "we like to come together around wine and share experiences", and that this year's Top 50 deserve, more than ever, a real visit that will be an unforgettable experience.
