Pretium: in love with old vines

Pretium, which means price in Latin, is the name that Berta Valgañón chose for her small venture in Cuzcurrita: “I try to bring to life the work of our grandparents and great-grandparents.” An agricultural engineer by training but professionally employed in the building sector, Berta decided a few years ago to roll up her sleeves and return to her village to farm the vineyards that her retiring father was about to quit: “I grew up in Cuzcurrita, when there were 20 or 30 children, and I decided to try to change things.” Berta was fully aware that the best vineyards, the oldest ones, were doomed to be grubbed up and that the small winery —most of them in the village are abandoned— would suffer the same fate: “My grandfather was a cosechero (traditional vigneron) and my father a winegrower. What really persuaded me were the hectares of hundred-year-old vineyards that we still have here. I was sure that they would be lost because they hardly yield any grapes”.

The producer revamped the cellar in the village and set about making and bottling Pretium, white and red, from these hundred-year-old vineyards to fill just over 4,000 bottles. Later on, she launched a very limited release of a spectacular Garnacha with a strong local identity. Berta, who farms 11 hectares of vineyards, is gradually bottling her own grapes in a new wine, Berta Valgañón Tempranillo, from bush vines bearing the identity of the coldest area in Rioja.

Pretium is an artisan winery, organically certified and with biodynamic farming practices. This is highly praiseworthy given that Berta works in the Obarenes mountains, a cool, humid area which she is passionate about. But above all, it is the dream of a woman who was brought up with Rioja’s historical traditions, its genuine wine culture and friendship, and who refuses to give up on them. She welcomes visitors and shows them around the vineyards, the cellar and the extraordinary historical and artistic heritage of the area. Brave, passionate, hard-working (she farms her vineyards)…, spending some time with Berta and her wines is an experience not to be missed.